Samsung used DSLR photo to sell Galaxy A8 Star
After promoting Galaxy Note 9 with an iPhone, Samsung has been caught using a DSLR-taken photo to sell camera capabilities of one of its mid-range smartphones. The original owner and subject of the photograph, Dunja Djudjic, found the image (with heavy editing) on Samsung's Malaysia website. Notably, this is not the first time Samsung has been caught doing something like this.
So, what really happened?
Djudjic claims that the DSLR photograph in question was recently sold by EmEye. As this was her first sale on the site, she reverse-searched the image to see where it has been posted, and found the heavily-edited version on Samsung's Malaysia website. The photo was being used to promote the portrait mode capabilities of Galaxy A8 Star - a mid-ranger from Samsung.
Misleading nature of Samsung's marketing
Samsung had made major changes into the photograph (they added a completely different background, changed hair color), but that's not the issue at hand. The real problem is Samsung's misleading marketing style. When you look at the photograph on the website, it appears that it had been taken by Galaxy A8 Star itself, but that's not the case. Neither did Samsung explicitly mention it.
Ideally, phone-makers use phone's own photos
Ideally, smartphone makers follow the practice of using photographs taken from the phone they are trying to sell. This way, customers can judge their camera capabilities and decide for themselves whether they should or should not go for it.
But, Samsung has done this before too
Yes, this is not the first 'unethical' case. Months ago, Samsung Brazil was caught passing off stock photos as those taken by the front-facing camera of Galaxy A8. Even then the South Korean giant had drawn flak for the practice and for adding its own watermark into the shot. Even Huawei has been bashed in the past for a similar move.
