South Korean giant Samsung has been ordered by the Advertising Standard Agency (ASA) to pull back two misleading online and TV advertisements. An adjudication was published on June 26, 2013 by the ASA, in which it states that it has received complaints over the advertisements which claim customers will receive free Galaxy Tab or money off the company’s products as they upgrade to the high-end Samsung models.
The agency said that the claim is false, as very few models are eligible for the order, which is a fact that was made clear in a small print only. The ad on TV said, “Trade up now to a Galaxy Note II and you could get a free Tab 2 or money off selected Samsung products.” At the end of the advertisement, a text appeared on screen which said, “T&Cs apply, selected smartphones, 16+.”
As 30 different phones qualified for the discount offer, just three of them were applicable for the conditional offer. Customers will be able to receive a Galaxy Tab 2 if they hand over an iPhone 4, Samsung Galaxy SII or the iPhone 4S. The South Korean giant argued that three different storage sizes of the iPhone made for six different models can be traded in, but the ASA says that consumers are likely to understand the iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S as the only two different smartphones.
