The Samsung Group (Korean: 삼성 그룹, Samsung Group) is the world's largest conglomerate. It is South Korea's largest chaebol and composed of numerous international businesses, all united under the Samsung brand, including Samsung Electronics, the world's largest electronics company,The Korea Herald: The Nation's No.1 Newspaper Quote: "Samsung Electronics, the world's largest electronics manufacturer" Samsung Heavy Industries, one of the world's largest shipbuilders and Samsung Engineering & Construction, a major global construction company. These three multinationals form the core of Samsung Group and reflect its name - the meaning of the Korean word Samsung is "tristar" or "three stars".

The Samsung brand is the best known South Korean brand in the world and in 2005, Samsung overtook Japanese rival Sony as the world's leading consumer electronics brand and became part of the top twenty global brands overall. It is also the leader in many domestic industries, such as the financial, chemical, retail and entertainment industries.

Background

Many major South Korean corporations such as CJ Corporation, Hansol Group, Shinsegae Group and Joong-Ang Ilbo daily newspaper were previously part of the Samsung Group, split apart by the government in order to prevent Samsung from becoming too powerful. Many leading companies in South Korea, notably MP3 player manufacturer iriver and search engine portal Naver, were established by ex-Samsung employees. A large number of South Korean firms, particularly those in the electronics industry, are dependent on Samsung for the supply of vital components or raw materials such as semiconductor chips or LCD panels. This has led to continued allegations of price fixing and monopolistic practices.

Samsung Group accounts for more than 20% of South Korea's total exports, with strong government support, including the ability to access unlimited amount of funds from major banks in South Korea. In many domestic industries, Samsung Group is the sole monopoly dominating a single market, its revenue as large as some countries' total GDP. In 2006, Samsung Group would have been the 34th largest economy in the world if ranked, larger than that of Argentina.[http://www.chosun.com/economy/news/200602/200602130520.html [초 국가기업] <上> 삼성 매출>싱가포르 GDP… 국가를 가르친다 - 조선닷컴 ] The company owns or has taken over so many mid to small sized businesses that it is often called a 'colonial empire' or 'hungry dinosaur'. The company has a powerful influence on the country's economic development, politics, media and culture, being a major driving force behind the Miracle on the Han River; many businesses today use its international success as a role model.