Samsung, LG, Pantech, and Kyocera, are perhaps the most recognizable mobile brands from Korea. Market leader Samsung may have just taken the first bite off the country's third biggest player Pantech, by purchasing a 10 percent stake. Valued at 53 billion KTW (about $48 million), the stake doesn't manage to put Samsung on Pantech's board, or any of its key decision-making bodies, but could work to its advantage. Samsung and LG are each major global suppliers of components for smartphones (SoCs, displays, batteries, etc.,) and the move could put Samsung at an advantage.