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SEOUL, Feb. 8 (Yonhap) -- South Korean tech giant Samsung Electronics Co. said Wednesday that it plans to put its new lineup of high-end smart TVs on the global market by the end of next month.

   Samsung Electronics unveiled a new lineup of high-end smart TVs, equipped with voice and motion recognition functions. Consumers will also be able to upgrade the capabilities of the Internet-connected TVs by inserting a so-called "evolution kit" into a slot on the back of the set, instead of having to buy a new TV when the set is out of date, according to Samsung.

   The company said its smart TVs will be put on sale starting this weekend in the local market and hit the global market by the end of March.

   Samsung said that it aims to sell around 50 million units of flat-screen TVs this year, 50 percent of which it hopes will be smart TVs.

   Kim Hyun-suk, an executive vice president at the company's TV division, said that his company is likely to unveil low-priced TVs "soon."

   Samsung and its local rival LG Electronics have been primarily focusing on production of premium TVs such as 3D TVs in a bid to raise global market shares.

   On the domestic front, however, the economic slowdown is prompting a bulk of consumers to set their sights on low-priced TVs produced by local retailers.

   Kim also added that Samsung hopes to unveil a smart TV operating on Google Inc's Android platform within this year.

   Samsung Electronics reported a 17 percent gain in net profit of 4 trillion won (US$3.58 billion) in the fourth quarter. Samsung, the world's largest TV maker, aims to increase its sales of televisions by around 15 percent this year by boosting its product lineup.

   sooyeon@yna.co.kr
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