Samsung Electronics is reporting sharply diverging fortunes between its chip and device operations as surging memory prices boost earnings for the producer side of the business while squeezing the smartphone unit. The company's semi-annual report, disclosed on the 18th, showed the DS (Device Solutions) Division's memory average selling price in the first half rose about 220% from last year's annual average, helping first-half revenue reach ₩209.23 trillion and operating profit ₩142.86 trillion, with a 68.3% margin, as AI data center expansion drove server demand. The DX (Device Experience) Division moved in the opposite direction, with first-half operating profit falling to ₩2.15 trillion from ₩8.08 trillion a year earlier and second-quarter operating loss reaching ₩818.8 billion, largely because the MX Business slipped to an operating loss of about ₩700 billion as mobile memory procurement prices climbed about 211%. Samsung was unable to fully pass those higher component costs through to handset prices, with smartphone average selling prices up only about 7%, even as its smartphone market share rose to 22%, up 2.8 percentage points from last year under a strategy that prioritizes budget-segment share over near-term profitability. Product momentum improved with strong Galaxy Z8 foldable pre-orders and a rebound in home appliances, but Korea Investment & Securities expects DX losses to continue through the third and fourth quarters. The widening earnings gap is also feeding internal tension, with DX unions demanding 1,000 treasury shares per employee, worth about ₩270 million per person and roughly ₩10 trillion in total.