Celebrities get paid to endorse Android phones all the time, but a lot of them mess up and accidentally reveal that they use iPhones in real life. They don’t usually face any serious repercussions except for embarrassment, until now that is.
Samsung is reportedly suing its Russian ambassador, Ksenia Sobchak, for RUB 108 million or about $1.6 million/Rs 12 lakh. Her offense? Getting caught using an iPhone X during an interview. As you can see in the image above and a video via The Mirror, she uses the device for a few minutes before hiding it under a piece of white paper.
Samsung Takes Action
This is not the only time Sobchak was found red-handed with an iPhone. According to reports, she’s been spotted numerous times parading it around at social events in Moscow and other television appearances.
All this probably goes against Sobchak’s deal with Samsung. The Russian journalist, politician, and presenter is contractually obligated to use only the South Korean brand’s smartphones in public. Going by similar agreements, she’s not allowed to be seen using rival products in public.
Also Read: iPhone XS Max thrashes Samsung Galaxy Note 9 in speed tests
Samsung is thus within its rights to sue her, but it might have been the wrong move since the gaffe has received more publicity now. Even acknowledging the issue must have been pretty embarrassing for the firm. Still, it’s possible it went this far to stop other celebrity influencers from repeating the same mistake.
Wonder Woman star Gal Gadot famously tweeted out a message promoting the Huawei Mate 10 Pro to her followers back in April this year. It was labeled as sent “via Twitter for iPhone.” After several people noticed this colossal mistake, the post was taken down and a staff member was blamed for the mishap.
As pointed out by AppleInsider, Samsung had a similar experience back in 2014 when Maroon 5 singer Adam Levine was endorsing its Milk Music service. While he talked about holding an “iPhone burning” at the time, he was later caught promoting a TV appearance from an iPhone.