In a nutshell: Samsung has responded to a $15 million lawsuit filed by pop superstar Dua Lipa over the singer's image appearing on its TV packaging without her permission. The company says the image was provided by a content partner who claimed permission had been secured. As such, Samsung is denying allegations of intentional misuse.
Lipa filed the lawsuit in California on May 8. It alleges Samsung prominently displayed a photograph of her face on television models sold in the US without "her knowledge, without consideration, and as to which she had no say, control, or input whatsoever."
The filing added that the TV packaging was "designed to improperly capitalize on Ms. Lipa's hard-earned success to promote and sell Samsung's products."
As noted in the suit, Lipa owns the copyright to the photo, which was taken at the Austin City Limits music festival in 2024.
The British singer wants no less than $15 million in damages for copyright infringement, trademark infringement, and misappropriation of her likeness and image. She is also requesting punitive damages and legal costs.
According to her legal team, Samsung violated California's right of publicity statute, which bars companies from using a celebrity's public identity for commercial purposes without permission. The lawsuit also includes claims under the federal Lanham Act, along with trademark and copyright claims.
The suit added that Lipa first became aware of the image appearing on the boxes in June 2025 when fans started posting about it. Some described it as the "Dua Lipa TV Box."
Two Instagram comments were highlighted by the lawsuit: one in which a user said they would "get that TV just because Dua is on it," and another that read: "If you need anything selling just put a picture of Dua Lipa on it."
Lipa and her legal team sent a cease-and-desist letter to Samsung asking for the image to be removed from the packaging, but they were met with a "dismissive and callous" response from the Korean giant, which did not comply with the demands.
Samsung has issued a statement on the matter. "Ms. Lipa's image was used in 2025 to reflect the content of our third-party partners that is available on Samsung TVs and was originally provided by a content partner for our free streaming service Samsung TV Plus. The image was used only after receiving explicit assurance from the content partner that permission had been secured, including for the retail boxes. Given this assurance, we deny any allegations of intentional misuse," the company wrote.
Samsung added that it immediately halted production of the boxes and replaced the packaging after the singer's representatives objected to the use of the image last July.
"Samsung has great respect for Ms. Lipa and the intellectual property of all artists. We have actively sought and remain open to a constructive resolution with Ms. Lipa's team," Samsung concluded.
It seems unlikely that Samsung's attempt to blame a content partner, along with its claim that it did not knowingly use Lipa's image without permission, will appease the singer.