According to an AFP report dated 16 April, 2013, Korean electronics company Samsung hired Taiwanese university students to publish slanderous articles on the internet about Taiwanese smart phone manufacturer HTC. Taiwan’s Fair Trade Commission is currently investigating the matter and there are already reports that Samsung is admitting outright to the misconduct in its marketing strategies.

After careful deliberation, if Taiwan’s Fair Trade Committee deem Samsung’s most recent stealth marketing strategy to be illegal, it will mean Samsung paying a US$835,000 penalty.

Regarding this latest problem, Samsung reflected on its actions by giving the following statement:

“Our understanding of the fundamental marketing principles were admittedly insufficient.”

The Korean company also stated that it would strive to avoid a recurrence of the same type of incident in the future.

Stealth marketing became a problem in Japan last year when public entertainers were used to promote company products. However Samsung’s most recent actions suggest that stealth tactics are not just limited to Japan but cross over, much further, on to the international market. As has been identified so many times by experts in the field, stealth marketing has a positive effect on merchandise sales for a limed period of time only. Once word gets out that a company has engaged in such underhand tactics, it often has the reverse effect of damaging their image.

Source: Gadget Sokuho