Samsung hopes to break through the 10 percent mark in smartphone share by the end of 2010, the company’ mobile group head JK Shin said at the IFA show today [sub. required]. He was optimistic about Samsung’s success in light of the Galaxy S and explained that Samsung now expects to ship 25 million smartphones this year, up from an earlier prediction of 18 million. It may ship as many as 50 million smartphones in 2011.

The Korean company has routinely held a top spot in cellphones and has over 20 percent of the market, but until now it has had little success in the smartphone arena. Much of its smartphone line was, until the past year, heavily dependent on Windows Mobile devices that rarely thrived in countries where the BlackBerry, iPhone and later Android devices were available.

It has since said it plans to prioritize Android above other platforms and is now sidelining other platforms, even its self-developed Bada OS and Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7.

Samsung’s gain would be unlikely to dislodge Apple, Google and RIM from their fourth- through second-place spots, but it may take away share from Symbian and what remains of Windows Mobile and Windows Phone share.