 Samsung estimated that by the end of July 2012 , the S III would have been released by 296 carriers in 145 countries , and that more than 10 million handsets would have been sold . Shin Jong @-@ <unk> , president of Samsung 's mobile communications sector , announced on 22 July that sales had exceeded 10 million . According to an assessment by Swiss financial services company UBS , Samsung had shipped 5 – 6 million units of the phone in the second quarter of 2012 and would ship 10 – 12 million handsets per quarter throughout the rest of the year . An even more aggressive prediction by Paris @-@ based banking group BNP Paribas said 15 million units will be shipped in the third quarter of 2012 , while Japanese financial consultant company Nomura placed the figure for this quarter as high as 18 million . Sales of the S III were estimated to top 40 million by the end of the year . To meet demand , Samsung had hired 75 @,@ 000 workers , and its South Korean factory was running at its peak capacity of 5 million smartphone units per month . 
