Due to smartphone sales — especially sales of lower-priced handsets in markets such as India and China — Samsung achieved record earnings in the third quarter of 2013 . The operating profit for this period rose to about 10.1 trillion won ( US$ 9.4 billion ) , a figure that was boosted by memory chip sales to customers such as Apple , Inc . On 14 October 2013 , Samsung Electronics publicly apologized for using refurbished components from cheaper desktop computers to fix higher-end products , after the corporation 's unethical business practices were exposed on the previous day by MBC TV 's current affairs magazine , '' 2580 . '' In February 2014 , Barnes & Noble announced a new Nook color tablet would be released in 2014 . In June 2014 , Barnes & Noble announced it would be teaming up with Samsung – one of the leaders in Android-based tablets – to develop co-branded color tablets titled the Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 Nook ; the devices will feature Samsung 's hardware , including a 7-inch display , and customized Nook software from Barnes & Noble . The first Galaxy Tab 4 Nook will begin selling in the US in August 2014 , with Nook focusing on the software and content , and Samsung focusing on the hardware . The product specs posted by Samsung indicate that , in contrast to the premium quality enhanced ereaders launched in 2012 ( the NOOK HD and HD , which " had screens and CPUs comparable to the best mid-level and premium tablets ) , the more budget-like features of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 Nook will be designed for a lower market tier ( Android 4.4.2 KitKat on a 1.2 GHz quad-core Snapdragon CPU with 1.5 GB RAM , Wifi , and Bluetooth , in addition to a 1.2 MP front-facing camera and a 3MP rear camera , screen resolution of 1280 x 800 , and a $ 199 retail price ; roughly $ 80 more than comparable tablets that do n't carry a Samsung brand ) . " Samsung provided sponsorship for the 86th Academy Awards ceremony ( held on March 4 , 2014 ) and , due to the use of the Samsung Galaxy Note smartphone product by host Ellen DeGeneres in a group selfie photograph that became an online viral phenomenon , the corporation donated US$ 3 million to two charitable organizations selected by DeGeneres . The official Samsung statement explained : " ... we wanted to make a donation to Ellen 's charities of choice : St Jude 's and the Humane Society . Samsung will donate 1.5 million dollars to each charity . " On April 17 , 2014 , Samsung had announced it was discontinuing its ebook store effective July 1 , 2014 and had partnered with Amazon to introduce the Kindle for Samsung app , that will permit Galaxy device users using Android 4.0 and up to buy and read content from Amazon 's catalog of periodicals and ebooks , and a free book service , Samsung Book Deals , that will allow users of the co-branded app to choose one free ebook monthly from a selection provided by Amazon
86th Academy Awards
86th Academy Awards
Samsung Electronics