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Samsung admits fault, faces fine in false advertising investigation

Published Apr 16th, 2013 1:20PM EDT

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Samsung has been known to go on the offensive with its marketing and advertising, but a new accusation alleges that Samsung might have gone too far with a recent campaign. According to a complaint filed in Taiwan, Samsung has been accused of hiring students to publish articles on the web that attacked HTC and recommended Samsung cell phones. The allegations are now being investigated by the Fair Trade Commission and could face an $835,000 fine, AFP reported. While the company hasn’t discussed any specific allegations, Samsung did admit fault to an extent due to employees’ “insufficient understanding” of its marketing principles, and it has issued the following statement to the media:

Samsung Electronics remains committed to engaging in transparent and honest communications with consumers as outlined in the company’s Online Communications Credo. We have encouraged all Samsung Electronics employees worldwide to remain faithful to our Credo. The recent incident was unfortunate, and occurred due to insufficient understanding of these fundamental principles.

Samsung Electronics Taiwan (SET) has ceased all marketing activities that involve the posting of anonymous comments, and will ensure that all SET online marketing activities will be fully compliant with the company’s Online Communications Credo.

We regret any inconvenience this incident may have caused. We will continue to reinforce education and training for our employees to prevent any future recurrence.

Zach Epstein
Zach Epstein Executive Editor

Zach Epstein has been the Executive Editor at BGR for more than 10 years. He manages BGR’s editorial team and ensures that best practices are adhered to. He also oversees the Ecommerce team and directs the daily flow of all content. Zach first joined BGR in 2007 as a Staff Writer covering business, technology, and entertainment.

His work has been quoted by countless top news organizations, and he was recently named one of the world's top 10 “power mobile influencers” by Forbes. Prior to BGR, Zach worked as an executive in marketing and business development with two private telcos.