South Korea's No. 3 smartphone maker, Pantech Co., under a court receivership, is set to be available for sale in the near future, industry sources said Wednesday, in a move to get the company back on its feet.

   The latest development came as the Seoul Central District Court gave the nod to Pantech's plan to post itself on the market for sale, a month after it commenced the troubled firm's court receivership program.

   Pantech's creditors, led by the Korea Development Bank, will accept bids from potential buyers soon, the sources said.

   The plan came as the creditors took into account the fact that Pantech's liquidating value stands at 189.5 billion won (US$182.3 million), whereas its going-concern value is around 382.4 billion won.

   Industry watchers anticipate a foreign tech player will become the winner of the troubled firm. Earlier this year, India-based Micromax had expressed its intention to acquire shares in Pantech.

   Although Pantech graduated from a five-year debt rescheduling program in December 2011, its financial footing weakened again as it struggled with falling sales from increased competition in the local smartphone market dominated by Samsung Electronics Co. and LG Electronics Inc.

   Pantech claims about 10 percent of the domestic handset market, which pales in comparison to Samsung's 60 percent and falls behind LG's 15 percent. (Yonhap)