Samsung Partners: Enterprise-Equipped Galaxy S6 On Mobile World Congress Wish List

Smartphone giant Samsung is hoping to make a splash in the mobility market with the debut of its newest smartphone, the Galaxy S6, at Mobile World Congress next week.

While little information has been revealed so far about the newest smartphone of the Galaxy S series, partners said they hope new enterprise-focused features will distinguish the Galaxy S6 from its predecessors.

"I'm hoping to understand how Samsung will ... better offer enterprise-grade devices as the company looks to gain a foothold in the enterprise space," said Ira Grossman, CTO of end user and mobile computing for MCPc, a Samsung partner specializing in mobile solutions with its Anyplace Workspace. "It has to begin to deliver products and services that enterprise devices need, like other smartphone vendors have."

[Related: Take That, Apple Pay: Samsung Snapping Up LoopPay In Mobile Commerce Push]

Samsung, known for its low-end phones in developing international markets, has introduced new products at a rapid pace. However, the South Korean-based company has recently started to crumble under dual competition from both high-end vendors, like Apple, and midrange vendors like Xiaomi and Huawei.

"[Samsung] better not fall too far behind Apple," said Steven Kantorowitz, president of CelPro Associates, a Samsung partner based in New York. "Apple has the mojo going these days, especially with its watch coming out soon. Samsung needs to create a buzz."

Recently, Samsung remained the top global smartphone vendor by shipments in the fourth quarter of 2014, but second-place vendor Apple made significant gains to trail behind Samsung by only 600,000 shipments, according to IDC.

Partners predict that the Galaxy S6's popularity will stem from a dip into the enterprise space. The company has made a few plays for enterprise mobility so far, including a recent partnership with Good Technology, to bolster its Knox security platform and boost its presence in the enterprise space.

But Grossman and other partners stressed that to break away from its largely consumer-based clientele, Samsung will need to take significant steps in its upcoming smartphone releases to promote enterprise-targeted features through its Android operating system and devices.

"I'd like to see a full accompaniment of accessories, like what Hewlett-Packard has done with their Android-based tablet," said Grossman. "HP offers jackets that have integrated card scanners, ruggedized cases and extended batteries. These accessories allow consumers to make their devices for purpose-built solutions."

Although little is known about the Galaxy S6, Samsung recently released previews of its Mobile World Congress conference featuring a curved line, spurring speculation about a new curved design for the smartphone, as well as new manufacturing materials, such as metal.

Patrick Moorhead, president and principal Analyst of Moor Insights & Strategy, a tech analyst firm based in Austin, Texas, said these design-based features could distinguish the Galaxy S6 by driving it to the higher end of the smartphone market spectrum.

"Samsung has the most to prove ... their market share has been in free fall for the past year," said Moorhead. "They need to bring a product that not only shows they understand the Western world better, but also that they understand the Asian market. What won't work is bringing a plastic-based phone with features that are not valuable. Metal would be a very smart play for them."

In addition to new features for the design and enhanced manufacturing material, partners are hoping to get a glimpse of how Samsung will integrate LoopPay, which it recently announced plans to buy, into its new smartphone.

LoopPay, a Burlington, Mass.-based company first founded in 2012, will help thrust Samsung into the mobile payment market along with competitors like Apple's Apple Pay and Google's Google Wallet.

Samsung did not immediately reply to a request for further comment regarding the release of the Galaxy S6.

Mobile World Congress, which will feature several key vendors alongside Samsung, such as HTC, Huawei and Sony, will take place in Barcelona, Spain, starting March 1.