Korean handset makers are selling phones to domestic consumers for much higher prices compared to customers in other countries including the U.S., an independent lawmaker revealed Sunday.

Rep. Kang Dong-won said the Galaxy Note 3 by Samsung Electronics was recently released in the domestic market for 1.06 million won ($988) while its price for overseas consumers ranged between 700,000 won and 900,000 won.

The parts cost around $237.50, according to semiconductor consulting firm Techinsite, which identified the cost after disassembling the tablet.

Kang said households have increasingly borne communications expenses because of overpriced smartphones. In 2012, each family of two or more persons spent an average of 1.9 million won on mobile handsets, equivalent to the cost of a premium refrigerator.

“The nation’s phone manufacturers need to lower the bloated prices of handheld devices. They should stop reverse discrimination against local users in favor of foreign consumers,” the lawmaker said.

“Instead of marketing strategies to sell high-priced smartphones, they should supply a more diverse range of budget phones to help lower communications expenses of households.”

An industry source said, “The Galaxy Note 3, at more than 1 million won, appears to be pricy considering this year’s trend of lowering premium phone costs. As the government recently pointed to handset prices as one of main culprits for the household communications burden, Galaxy Note 3 may face backlash from the government.”

Amid the government’s subsidy regulations and weakened consumer confidence, most premium phones rolled out this year have had their prices reduced. Pantech’s Vega No 6, LG’s Optimus G Pro, and Samsung’s Galaxy S4 sold for around 800,000 won and long term evolution-advanced models Galaxy S4 LTE-A and G2 were priced at around 950,000 won.

By Shin Ji-hye (shinjh@heraldcorp.com)