Samsung has confirmed that it plans on launching its first smartphone based on its Tizen operating system sometime during the third quarter, according to Reuters.
The move marks the company's latest attempt to build up its own ecosystem and reduce reliance on Google's Android OS.
The South Korean company said today (June 2) that the Samsung Z will be unveiled during the Tizen Developer Conference in San Francisco on June 3.
The Samsung Z comes with a 4.8-inch high-definition display, and offers a number of features, including a fingerprint sensor, according to Reuters.
The smartphone will be available for purchase in Russia sometime between July and September, and other markets will follow soon after, the company confirmed in a statement.
Samsung did not specify which markets will or won't receive the phone, nor did the company offer sales forecasts.
The company also failed to mention how much the phone will sell for, according to Reuters.
Samsung is reportedly working on at least two models powered by Tizen, which will be released in "a few countries where we can do well," according to a Samsung executive, who spoke with Reuters about the device.
Most of Samsung's mobile devices are based on Google's Android platform. The push to develop its own OS is part of efforts to reduce dependency on the U.S. company, but delays in product launches have set back expectations a little bit, according to Reuters.
The Samsung executive believes that Tizen would have to account for up to 15 percent of Samsung's total smartphone shipments in order for it to be considered a success.
"There is plenty of room and plenty of opportunity for a strong third vendor; arguably if you can carve out 10 percent of a two billion units market in smartphones (by 2018), then that could be an opportunity," said Rachel Lashford, Singapore-based analyst at Canalys, according to Reuters.
Analysts believe it will be difficult for Samsung to attract enough developers to make apps and services necessary for Tizen to become a threat to other operating systems like Android and Apple's iOS platform.
Samsung has not said how many apps are currently available for TIzen yet.
"The market for Tizen won't be as big as Android or Apple's iOS, so I think it will be a challenge for Samsung to build up an ecosystem," said IM Investment analyst Lee Min-hee, according to Reuters.
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