Inheritance: Samsung

Samsung faces an uncertain future after its chairman, JY Lee, is jailed. In the final part of the series, Samsung is uncharted territory. The company – and the family – must survive.In this brand-new 10-part series from the BBC World Service, we take you behind closed doors - inside the billion-dollar deals and the family power struggles that shape global empires. When your relatives are also your business partners, every decision is personal. In these dynasties, the boardroom isn’t just about profit - it’s about survival.Host: Elise Hu Producers: Simon Tulett and Sally Abrahams Fact-checkers: Matt Toulson and Su-Min Hwang Music: Thomas Ross Fitzsimons Mixing and sound design: Charlie Brandon-King Series editor: Matt Willis With special thanks to Geoffrey Cain, Sojin Lim, Jaeyeon Lee, Jake Kwon and Mary Wilkinson Senior commissioning producer: Sarah Green Commissioning editor: Jon ManelInheritance is a BBC Long Form Audio production

An old feud comes back to haunt the Lee family. A seed sown decades ago blossoms into a fraternal battle, putting the carefully planned succession at risk. But it’s not the only front on which Samsung is fighting for its survival.In this brand-new 10-part series from the BBC World Service, we take you behind closed doors - inside the billion-dollar deals and the family power struggles that shape global empires. When your relatives are also your business partners, every decision is personal. In these dynasties, the boardroom isn’t just about profit - it’s about survival.Host: Elise Hu Producers: Simon Tulett and Sally Abrahams Fact-checkers: Matt Toulson and Su-Min Hwang Music: Thomas Ross Fitzsimons Mixing and sound design: Charlie Brandon-King Series editor: Matt Willis With special thanks to Geoffrey Cain, Sojin Lim, Jaeyeon Lee, Jake Kwon and Mary Wilkinson Senior commissioning producer: Sarah Green Commissioning editor: Jon ManelInheritance is a BBC Long Form Audio production

Samsung finds global recognition through a relentless focus on quality and a little help from Hollywood. But in the mid-2000s, its leaders come under pressure about alleged bribery.In this brand-new 10-part series from the BBC World Service, we take you behind closed doors - inside the billion-dollar deals and the family power struggles that shape global empires. When your relatives are also your business partners, every decision is personal. In these dynasties, the boardroom isn’t just about profit - it’s about survival.Host: Elise Hu Producers: Simon Tulett and Sally Abrahams Fact-checkers: Matt Toulson and Su-Min Hwang Music: Thomas Ross Fitzsimons Mixing and sound design: Charlie Brandon-King Series editor: Matt Willis With special thanks to Geoffrey Cain, Sojin Lim, Jaeyeon Lee, Jake Kwon and Mary Wilkinson Senior commissioning producer: Sarah Green Commissioning editor: Jon ManelInheritance is a BBC Long Form Audio production

In the 1980s KH Lee takes charge of Samsung, but the business is struggling in a competitive global electronics market. It’s up to him to turn it around, and secure its future for the next generation with a complex succession plan.In this brand-new 10-part series from the BBC World Service, we take you behind closed doors- inside the billion-dollar deals and the family power struggles that shape global empires. When your relatives are also your business partners, every decision is personal. In these dynasties, the boardroom isn’t just about profit - it’s about survival.Host: Elise Hu Producers: Simon Tulett and Sally Abrahams Fact-checkers: Matt Toulson and Su-Min Hwang Music: Thomas Ross Fitzsimons Mixing and sound design: Charlie Brandon-King Series editor: Matt Willis With special thanks to Geoffrey Cain, Sojin Lim, Jaeyeon Lee, Jake Kwon and Mary Wilkinson Senior commissioning producer: Sarah Green Commissioning editor: Jon ManelInheritance is a BBC Long Form Audio production

Samsung started as a fruit and vegetable business, but growth in the 1950s leaves it vulnerable to political interference. Its chairman makes a deal to ensure its survival, but is instead hit with a scandal which could derail the whole company. How did Samsung get through to become the global tech giant we know today?In this brand-new 10-part series from the BBC World Service, we take you behind closed doors - inside the billion-dollar deals and the family power struggles that shape global empires. When your relatives are also your business partners, every decision is personal. In these dynasties, the boardroom isn’t just about profit - it’s about survival.Host: Elise Hu Producers: Simon Tulett and Sally Abrahams Fact-checkers: Matt Toulson and Su-Min Hwang Music: Thomas Ross Fitzsimons Mixing and sound design: Charlie Brandon-King. Series editor: Matt Willis With special thanks to Geoffrey Cain, Sojin Lim, Jaeyeon Lee, Jake Kwon and, also, Mary Wilkinson. Senior commissioning producer: Sarah Green Commissioning editor: Jon ManelInheritance is a BBC Long Form Audio production

From a fruit and vegetable store to a global empire, Samsung’s story is more than business - it’s an epic family saga. Behind the success lies a dynasty driven by ambition, wealth, tradition and rivalries, where power struggles shaped not just the company but South Korea’s economy.Everyone’s heard of Samsung; more than a billion people have one of their smart phones. This is the drama behind the tech giant that changed the world.For most of Samsung’s history, the ruling Lee family was all but untouchable. But when the chairman has a huge heart attack, his heir is pushed into the spotlight. The complex manoeuvring to secure his fragile succession re-opens old family wounds, prompts one of the biggest scandals in South Korea’s history, and - eventually - helps bring down a president.In this brand-new 10-part series from the BBC World Service, we take you behind closed doors - inside the billion-dollar deals and the family power struggles that shape global empires. In these dynasties, the boardroom isn’t just about profit - it’s about survival.Hosted by journalist and podcaster Elise Hu.