Samsung Closing in On Deals With Two U.S. Agencies

Samsung and two U.S. government agencies are allegedly close to signing deals for the company's devices, according to sources speaking with the Wall Street Journal. The Korean company has largely dominated worldwide consumer mindshare, and it's working toward winning over enterprise customers. People familiar with Samsung's plans claim both the FBI and U.S. Navy will enter into an agreement, though no deals have been finalized quite yet.

Over the past several months, Samsung has poached some key BlackBerry employees as it puts intense focus on enterprise-related software; the company has even collaborated with third-party firms in order to beef up security. Devices meant for the FBI will allegedly come with Samsung's KNOX software, according to sources. Earlier this year, a report from Forbes claimed Samsung had BlackBerry "in its cross hairs," and this latest report suggests that's very much the case.

Samsung received approval from the U.S. Department of Defense earlier this year—Apple did as well, it's worth noting—and the FBI and U.S. Navy are the first government contracts for the Korean company here in the states. Enterprise has been one of Samsung's biggest weaknesses relative to companies such as Apple and BlackBerry, but these potential contracts could be the start of something bigger, although they're expected to be relatively small, people familiar with the plans said.

"They could be seen as an indicator to other government agencies and security-conscious companies that Samsung devices are ready to use," the WSJ said.

Samsung said earlier this year that it doesn't expect to dominate the enterprise sector like it does the consumer market, but that doesn't mean it won't try.