LG Electronics (LG), a worldwide technology and design leader in mobile communications, continues to maintain its leadership in touchscreen phones when it recently announced that its sales of touchscreen phones jumped to 7 million units at the end of the second quarter. This comes just five quarters after LG launched the world’s first full touchscreen handset, the Prada Phone by LG.

Of all the LG’s touch-based phones, the Viewty, a professional-level camera phone, is its top seller, which broke all the records and sold 2 million units. The phone’s popularity lies in its sharp 5.0-megapixel camera and easy touchscreen interface that allows for easy editing of photos. Runners up include Venus, based around LG’s intuitive touch-sensitive InteractPad™, and Voyager, the first handset to incorporate both a full touchscreen and a QWERTY keyboard. These phones sold 1.6 and 1.3 million units respectively. The Prada Phone by LG was also a strong seller, even at its original premium price.

It is with the increasing sales and growth of touch screen phones that derived to LG’s overall profits and its brand equity. The average selling price of the 7 million touchscreen phones that LG sold was USD 530. Especially important to LG’s overall success were high sales of premium models including Viewty, Voyager and Venus in both Europe and North America.

The company’s brand recognition in the U.K. soared to 91.4 percent in 2007 versus 80 percent in 2005, according to internal research measuring unaided brand awareness. During the same period in the U.S., where LG launched a number of touchscreen phones including Voyager, Venus and Vu, LG’s brand recognition rose to 83.1 percent from 65.1 percent.

Speaking on the occasion Dr. Skott Ahn, President & CEO of LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company said:

“We were a true pioneer in touchscreen phones, applying for a total of 49 patents while developing the Prada Phone by LG. From the beginning we have worked to create phones that are extremely easy to use despite their myriad features. This is why our touchscreen phones have been so well received around the world. As the market for touchscreen phones continues to grow we will also continue our research in this area to create even more innovative products.”

According to a recent study by Strategy Analytics, the global touchscreen handset market will reach 125 million units by 2010, a more than four-fold increase of 2007’s 30 million units. This is why LG Electronics’ leadership in touchscreen phones is so important and is a key to the company’s future success.