Samsung Electronics shipped 51.8 million phones in the third quarter, up 22 percent from the 42.6 million they sold in the year-ago quarter and up 13 percent from 45.7 million in the second quarter this year.

The company as a whole saw its net profit drop 44 percent to $924 million, and its profit margins fell. The average selling price for a Samsung phone dropped to $135 in the third quarter, down from $142 in the second quarter of 2008.

The handset unit, the company's largest unit by revenue, saw its operating-profit margin fall to 9.5 percent, down from 12.8 percent in the year-ago quarter and  11.3 percent in the second quarter. However, Samsung said it expects to meet a goal of shipping 200 million units by the end of the year.

For more:
- see this Marketwatch article [1]
- see this MobileBurn article [2]

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