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Samsung Orders Kogan to Halt Commercials

By Andy Sim - on 7 Dec 2011, 9:00am

Samsung Orders Kogan to Halt Commercials

(Image credit: kogan.com.au)

It's inevitable for TV makers to form alliances given the limited number of LCD panel manufacturers present in the industry. For instance, Sony and Sharp used to co-produce LCD TV panels before the joint venture turned sour last year. In a similar vein, Samsung not only manufactures panels for themselves, but also sells them to external TV vendors in the market. More recently, Kogan, an Australian consumer electronics maker and online retailer, went on air to credit Samsung and LG during part of a Brand Power commercial which features Kogan HDTVs.  

While Samsung ought to be glad that another TV maker has accredited them for sporting Samsung LCD panels, the Korean company is equally concerned about the subliminal message Kogan is trying to send out to the masses as well. Is Kogan implying their HDTVs are as competent as Samsung's? According to News.com.au, Samsung has since issued a cease-and-desist to the Australian firm. Expectedly, Samsung's hardball tactics didn't go down very well with Kogan's CEO, Ruslan Kogan, who'd be glad to let the matter go to court. According to the Australian news site, he did not sign any contract which prohibits him from proclaiming the use of Samsung components. "The truth is that we do use big brand components in our TVs, and Samsung should not be trying to hide the truth of what has been happening in our industry", he said.

Samsung's two-part legal complaint consists of a trademark infringement by Kogan and the improper use of the word "components" in the commercial as opposed to "component". They have also ordered Kogan to pull the ad offline and to replace it with another which highlights the fact that Kogan televisions are not the same as Samsung TVs. You may view the commercial here, but we reckon the ad won't last very long on YouTube following Samsung's recent grievances.

Source: News.com.au via Engadget

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