Bloomberg: AT&T considers stopping Samsung Note 7 sales

A second Galaxy Note 7 recall might not be the only headache Samsung could possibly have to deal with. Citing a person familiar with the matter, Bloomberg reports that U.S. carrier AT&T considers ultimately cancelling sales of the defective phablet. The final decision is said to be revealed soon.

Currently, all four national carriers offer alternative smartphones to customers who want to return their Note 7 handsets. After the recall, sales of supposedly safe units resumed around the 25th of September. Alas, an incident in which a replacement Galaxy Note 7 ignited upon boarding a Southwest Airlines Co. airplane, along with other reports of replacement units catching fire, has sparked another controversy.

Samsung has already lost billions of dollars with its Note 7 recall and is now facing a second one, or stopping Note 7 sales altogether. Both scenarios will tarnish the brand and impose signifucant financial tolls. Samsung's major mobile product for the second half of 2016 is unable to compete effectively against the Apple iPhone 7 and 7 Plus, and Google is embarking on a high-profile marketing campaign for its new Pixel handsets. Samsung could very well pay its respects to the Note 7 and move on to its next flagship smartphone, announcing it earlier than expected in order to sustain the brand and make up for the financial losses caused by the defective phablet.

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