Inheritance: Samsung: 1. My kingdom for a horse
The Documentary Podcast
BBC
4.3 • 2.7K Ratings
🗓️ 1 April 2026
⏱️ 25 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In 2017, the heir to South Korea’s biggest company is facing jail, leaving it with an uncertain future. After 80 years of business, how did Samsung get here? And how did a deal meant to secure family control of the company go so wrong? 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 is not just about profit - it is about survival.
A new 10-part series from the BBC World Service. Search for Inheritance: Samsung wherever you get your BBC podcasts.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | BBC Sounds, Music, radio, podcasts. |
| 0:09.5 | February 2017. |
| 0:12.2 | Wintertime in South Korea. |
| 0:15.2 | Bright sunshine, a chill breeze just above freezing. |
| 0:21.3 | In Central Seoul, a blue prison bus rolls to a stop. |
| 0:27.2 | Peering out through its tinted windows, the accused man can see what is waiting for him. |
| 0:33.4 | Police and photographers line the road, protesters too. |
| 0:38.7 | In a moment, the doors will open, and he'll have to face them. |
| 0:43.8 | But E.J. Yong, known as J.Y. Lee, isn't your usual kind of prisoner. |
| 0:50.8 | He's Aaron waiting to Samsung. A global tech giant, one of the biggest names in phones and TVs, but an empire built on much more. |
| 1:02.0 | Memory chips, construction, insurance. |
| 1:05.5 | It's South Korea's biggest company. |
| 1:08.7 | Its biggest success story by far. |
| 1:13.6 | 48 years old, Jay-Y. Lee is one of the country's richest, most powerful people. |
| 1:21.6 | One of the most powerful people in the history of technology. |
| 1:25.6 | Jeffrey Kane is author of the book Samsung Rising. |
| 1:29.0 | You'll hear a lot from him this series. |
| 1:31.0 | He's one of four Samsung watchers who will be helping us with this incredible story. |
| 1:36.2 | I remember that moment well. I was there. I was outside the courthouse. |
| 1:40.6 | This is one of the most significant moments ever in the history of South Korea. |
| 1:45.9 | I remember this moment vividly, too. |
| 1:48.5 | I had just set up a news bureau in Seoul for NPR, the American public broadcaster. |
... |
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