Samsung is fighting back against a $15 million lawsuit filed by pop star Dua Lipa over the use of her photo on TV packaging, asking a California court to toss the case, according to IThome.
The lawsuit, filed in May 2026 in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, alleges that Samsung used a copyrighted photo of Lipa without permission, placing it prominently on retail boxes of Samsung televisions. Lipa's legal team claims copyright infringement, trademark infringement, and violation of her right of publicity, seeking $15 million (about 1.01 billion yuan at current exchange rates).
Days after the lawsuit was filed, Samsung responded, saying the image was used to showcase content available on its free streaming service Samsung TV Plus, not to promote the TV hardware itself. The company said the photo came from a content partner who had assured Samsung it held all necessary licenses. Based on that assurance, Samsung printed the image on retail packaging, and it denies any deliberate misuse of Lipa's likeness.
Samsung's dismissal motion
In recent court filings, as reported by Rolling Stone, Samsung asked the court to dismiss the lawsuit in its entirety. The company argues that nothing about the packaging would lead a reasonable person to believe Lipa endorses Samsung televisions. Samsung's attorneys wrote: "These images merely depict the TV's screen interface, demonstrating applications and examples of content that can be played on the TV."
The case highlights the legal risks of using celebrity images in product packaging, even when the intent is to promote content rather than hardware. For tech companies, the dispute underscores the importance of verifying content licenses before using images in marketing materials.
As of now, the court has not ruled on Samsung's motion to dismiss. The outcome could set a precedent for how copyright and publicity rights apply to content shown on devices.
