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You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2012/sep/03/samsung-tech-bloggers
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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| The Samsung controversy and the murky world of tech blogging | The Samsung controversy and the murky world of tech blogging |
| (about 2 months later) | |
| For the two technology bloggers from India, it looked like a dream invitation from the electronics giant Samsung: it would pay for their flights and accommodation to cover the IFA trade fair in Berlin, where the season's biggest tech announcements are made, under an outreach programme called "Samsung Mobilers". | For the two technology bloggers from India, it looked like a dream invitation from the electronics giant Samsung: it would pay for their flights and accommodation to cover the IFA trade fair in Berlin, where the season's biggest tech announcements are made, under an outreach programme called "Samsung Mobilers". |
| But the dream turned sour when Clinton Jeff and a colleague were told on arriving that they would be issued with uniforms and expected to work as staff on the booths – showing off new Samsung products to the press, rather than writing about them. | But the dream turned sour when Clinton Jeff and a colleague were told on arriving that they would be issued with uniforms and expected to work as staff on the booths – showing off new Samsung products to the press, rather than writing about them. |
| And when the duo protested, Samsung withdrew their funding – leaving them stranded thousands of miles from home without a plane ticket back, nor means to pay their hotel bill. They were saved when a representative from Nokia, the Finnish phone company, stepped in to help the pair, sorting out flights and hotel costs. | And when the duo protested, Samsung withdrew their funding – leaving them stranded thousands of miles from home without a plane ticket back, nor means to pay their hotel bill. They were saved when a representative from Nokia, the Finnish phone company, stepped in to help the pair, sorting out flights and hotel costs. |
| Though Samsung said there had been a "misunderstanding", the Guardian has established that France Quiqueré, a French technology blogger, has levelled a similar complaint, which the Guardian has established is also against Samsung. | Though Samsung said there had been a "misunderstanding", the Guardian has established that France Quiqueré, a French technology blogger, has levelled a similar complaint, which the Guardian has established is also against Samsung. |
| The incidents have exposed a dark underbelly to technology reporting and blogging – in which companies offer rewards to bloggers, who often do not acknowledge that they are writing posts not for their news value to readers, but because they want to get free products and even trips. Not disclosing such motives is against Advertising Standards Authority rules laid down in 2009, as well as the consumer protection law, as shown by a 2010 investigation by the Office of Fair Trading against a company called Handpicked Media. | The incidents have exposed a dark underbelly to technology reporting and blogging – in which companies offer rewards to bloggers, who often do not acknowledge that they are writing posts not for their news value to readers, but because they want to get free products and even trips. Not disclosing such motives is against Advertising Standards Authority rules laid down in 2009, as well as the consumer protection law, as shown by a 2010 investigation by the Office of Fair Trading against a company called Handpicked Media. |
| Quiqueré, who has been a "brand ambassador" for Samsung since 2010, was told she had won a competition to come at the company's expense to the Olympics in London in August, along with a group of bloggers. She went expecting to be a guest at events, because Samsung was a major sponsor of the Olympics, for which it paid more than $100m. | Quiqueré, who has been a "brand ambassador" for Samsung since 2010, was told she had won a competition to come at the company's expense to the Olympics in London in August, along with a group of bloggers. She went expecting to be a guest at events, because Samsung was a major sponsor of the Olympics, for which it paid more than $100m. |
| Instead the group found that the six-day trip involved barely any visits to events. Instead they were meant to create promotional videos and photos, and fill out daily reports on what they had done. They were also instructed to upload videos of promotional events to their personal YouTube accounts – an instruction that Quiqueré resisted strongly. She says that by the end of the five-day trip she saw two events – a table-tennis semifinal and a volleyball eliminator. "We didn't have the chance to see the Olympic stadium or participate [in] other festive events related to the Olympics," Quiqueré complained. "The most embarrassing thing is the surreal feeling of being trapped." | Instead the group found that the six-day trip involved barely any visits to events. Instead they were meant to create promotional videos and photos, and fill out daily reports on what they had done. They were also instructed to upload videos of promotional events to their personal YouTube accounts – an instruction that Quiqueré resisted strongly. She says that by the end of the five-day trip she saw two events – a table-tennis semifinal and a volleyball eliminator. "We didn't have the chance to see the Olympic stadium or participate [in] other festive events related to the Olympics," Quiqueré complained. "The most embarrassing thing is the surreal feeling of being trapped." |
| All the bloggers were part of Samsung's "Mobilers" programme, a multi-country PR scheme described in the UK as "an exclusive network of bloggers who are first in line to trial and review the latest Samsung products, for free!". The scheme is aimed at bloggers seen as influential by Samsung. They are encouraged to write posts about Samsung products – with subjects suggested multiple times a week – for which they earn points towards "rewards". | All the bloggers were part of Samsung's "Mobilers" programme, a multi-country PR scheme described in the UK as "an exclusive network of bloggers who are first in line to trial and review the latest Samsung products, for free!". The scheme is aimed at bloggers seen as influential by Samsung. They are encouraged to write posts about Samsung products – with subjects suggested multiple times a week – for which they earn points towards "rewards". |
| But the Guardian has established that many of those who blog in this way do not acknowledge that they are receiving rewards for doing so – contravening the law. | But the Guardian has established that many of those who blog in this way do not acknowledge that they are receiving rewards for doing so – contravening the law. |
| The plight of the Indian bloggers was first exposed by technology news site The Next Web, which calls the Mobilers programme "Samsung's fanboy factory" (a "fanboy" being an uncritical supporter of a brand, group or team). However, the pair have been criticised by peers, who said Jeff and his colleague were naive and misunderstood the communications from Samsung India. | The plight of the Indian bloggers was first exposed by technology news site The Next Web, which calls the Mobilers programme "Samsung's fanboy factory" (a "fanboy" being an uncritical supporter of a brand, group or team). However, the pair have been criticised by peers, who said Jeff and his colleague were naive and misunderstood the communications from Samsung India. |
| Jeff and his companion blogger from India, who does not want to be named, were members of the Samsung India Mobilers programme. But they were shocked by their experience at IFA, one of the world's biggest technology shows. They insist they had told Samsung that they would only travel if they could work as independent journalists and look at other companies' stands at the show. Such opportunities are rare for Indian bloggers; they had thought that the quid pro quo would be to get early views of new Samsung products which they could blog about – thus satisfying themselves and Samsung. | Jeff and his companion blogger from India, who does not want to be named, were members of the Samsung India Mobilers programme. But they were shocked by their experience at IFA, one of the world's biggest technology shows. They insist they had told Samsung that they would only travel if they could work as independent journalists and look at other companies' stands at the show. Such opportunities are rare for Indian bloggers; they had thought that the quid pro quo would be to get early views of new Samsung products which they could blog about – thus satisfying themselves and Samsung. |
| However, Samsung representatives at the show insisted that they had agreed to be "promoters" of the product, which entailed wearing a uniform and showing off the products at its booth. When Jeff and his colleague declined to take part, they say, a Samsung India representative told them that they would be brought back immediately, unless they agreed to appear at a Samsung event wearing company T-shirts. | However, Samsung representatives at the show insisted that they had agreed to be "promoters" of the product, which entailed wearing a uniform and showing off the products at its booth. When Jeff and his colleague declined to take part, they say, a Samsung India representative told them that they would be brought back immediately, unless they agreed to appear at a Samsung event wearing company T-shirts. |
| After doing that, Jeff talked to a friend who contacted Nokia, which agreed to pay the duo's plane flights and hotel costs without, Jeff says, requiring any coverage or mention in return. | After doing that, Jeff talked to a friend who contacted Nokia, which agreed to pay the duo's plane flights and hotel costs without, Jeff says, requiring any coverage or mention in return. |
| Samsung said in a statement: "Samsung Mobilers is a voluntary community of active Samsung mobile device users, who are offered the opportunity to participate in our marketing events across the world. At these events, all activities they undertake are on a voluntary basis. No activities are forced upon them. | Samsung said in a statement: "Samsung Mobilers is a voluntary community of active Samsung mobile device users, who are offered the opportunity to participate in our marketing events across the world. At these events, all activities they undertake are on a voluntary basis. No activities are forced upon them. |
| "We regret there was a misunderstanding between the Samsung Mobilers coordinators and the relevant blogger, as we understand he was not sufficiently briefed on the nature of Samsung Mobilers' activities at IFA 2012. We have been attempting to get in touch with him. We respect the independence of bloggers to publish their own stories." | "We regret there was a misunderstanding between the Samsung Mobilers coordinators and the relevant blogger, as we understand he was not sufficiently briefed on the nature of Samsung Mobilers' activities at IFA 2012. We have been attempting to get in touch with him. We respect the independence of bloggers to publish their own stories." |
| The Mobilers marketing programme is open to bloggers, though Samsung determines who takes part. In the UK, it has more than 50 members in the scheme, and dozens more in every other country where it runs. | The Mobilers marketing programme is open to bloggers, though Samsung determines who takes part. In the UK, it has more than 50 members in the scheme, and dozens more in every other country where it runs. |
| Members are given "missions" in which they are asked to promote products or features. On the UK site, for example, the current one is to showcase the functionality of the S-Voice speech control system on the Galaxy S3 smartphone, while others have made simpler requests: "please could you write and share a short post about the Samsung Olympic Pins competition?" or more recently "create something to show the best of the exclusive Samsung Official Top 40 app". | Members are given "missions" in which they are asked to promote products or features. On the UK site, for example, the current one is to showcase the functionality of the S-Voice speech control system on the Galaxy S3 smartphone, while others have made simpler requests: "please could you write and share a short post about the Samsung Olympic Pins competition?" or more recently "create something to show the best of the exclusive Samsung Official Top 40 app". |
| Members then take up the "mission" by writing posts to fulfil them, for which they earn points. One example is at droid-den, which earned a "Mobiler point" for a post about the Samsung Galaxy S3's "pop-up play". The post and page contains no mention that it was written at the urging or for a reward from Samsung, although Rachid Otsmane-Elhaou, based in Manchester, who runs the blog and wrote the post, acknowledges his membership of the scheme in the blog's "about" page. | Members then take up the "mission" by writing posts to fulfil them, for which they earn points. One example is at droid-den, which earned a "Mobiler point" for a post about the Samsung Galaxy S3's "pop-up play". The post and page contains no mention that it was written at the urging or for a reward from Samsung, although Rachid Otsmane-Elhaou, based in Manchester, who runs the blog and wrote the post, acknowledges his membership of the scheme in the blog's "about" page. |
| Otsmane-Elhaou did not respond to a Guardian request for comment. But other posts by Samsung Mobilers bloggers also failed to disclose their participation in the programme. | Otsmane-Elhaou did not respond to a Guardian request for comment. But other posts by Samsung Mobilers bloggers also failed to disclose their participation in the programme. |
| Rich Leigh, co-founder of bloggabase.com, a blog database that aims to connect bloggers with marketers, said: "Bloggers should make it clear that they are being paid or being given freebies to review. Whether this is done in an obvious way within the body of the text or a simple declaration at the end of the post, it's always within the blogger's best interests to keep their nose clean here. It'll help build reader trust and ensure transparency." | Rich Leigh, co-founder of bloggabase.com, a blog database that aims to connect bloggers with marketers, said: "Bloggers should make it clear that they are being paid or being given freebies to review. Whether this is done in an obvious way within the body of the text or a simple declaration at the end of the post, it's always within the blogger's best interests to keep their nose clean here. It'll help build reader trust and ensure transparency." |
| Sally Whittle, founder of Tots100, reckoned to be the UK's largest network of parent blogs, and who runs her own site Who's the Mummy, said: "Disclosure is a real hot topic – most bloggers know they should disclose, but there's no single way to do it. I see things being marked as 'sponsored', 'featured' and all sorts of things in between. We try and educate people that disclosure is a legal requirement but I think sometimes people are wary of putting off their readers, or being seen as having 'sold out' – readership can go down on posts where freebies are being received by the blogger." | Sally Whittle, founder of Tots100, reckoned to be the UK's largest network of parent blogs, and who runs her own site Who's the Mummy, said: "Disclosure is a real hot topic – most bloggers know they should disclose, but there's no single way to do it. I see things being marked as 'sponsored', 'featured' and all sorts of things in between. We try and educate people that disclosure is a legal requirement but I think sometimes people are wary of putting off their readers, or being seen as having 'sold out' – readership can go down on posts where freebies are being received by the blogger." |
| She added: "There have been a few cases of people being called out for not disclosing – there was a recent kerfuffle with a beauty box provider, for example, where bloggers were writing about the boxes but not disclosing they'd got them free – and the boxes they received seemed to be better than the ones readers were purchasing." | She added: "There have been a few cases of people being called out for not disclosing – there was a recent kerfuffle with a beauty box provider, for example, where bloggers were writing about the boxes but not disclosing they'd got them free – and the boxes they received seemed to be better than the ones readers were purchasing." |
| Rachel Clarke, head of social media at the marketing agency Momentum UK, said: "Legally, bloggers should disclose this because it's paid advertising." She said she was surprised by the reports of the bloggers' experience at IFA with Samsung, which she said has "done a lot of good promotions in the past". | Rachel Clarke, head of social media at the marketing agency Momentum UK, said: "Legally, bloggers should disclose this because it's paid advertising." She said she was surprised by the reports of the bloggers' experience at IFA with Samsung, which she said has "done a lot of good promotions in the past". |
| But she said as companies and bloggers interact more frequently – with companies trying to build up a groundswell of coverage for products that news sites might not – misunderstandings and differences in expectation could arise more often. "There's a growing expectation from bloggers that they will get VIP treatment, but that might not be what companies are offering," she said. | But she said as companies and bloggers interact more frequently – with companies trying to build up a groundswell of coverage for products that news sites might not – misunderstandings and differences in expectation could arise more often. "There's a growing expectation from bloggers that they will get VIP treatment, but that might not be what companies are offering," she said. |
| Whittle said sometimes it is the brands which pressure bloggers not to disclose their involvement: "we did a survey a month or so back and found that one in three of our members has been asked by a PR or SEO agency not to disclose a freebie or paid content – because the brands want links but don't want to risk being clobbered by Google for buying follow links. Some bloggers have had a lot of pressure on this score, with some brands asking for refunds or withholding payment if a blogger discloses a freebie or payment on a post." | Whittle said sometimes it is the brands which pressure bloggers not to disclose their involvement: "we did a survey a month or so back and found that one in three of our members has been asked by a PR or SEO agency not to disclose a freebie or paid content – because the brands want links but don't want to risk being clobbered by Google for buying follow links. Some bloggers have had a lot of pressure on this score, with some brands asking for refunds or withholding payment if a blogger discloses a freebie or payment on a post." |
| Comments | |
| 74 comments, displaying first | |
| 3 September 2012 3:22PM | |
| I had to blink a few times before I recognised this as an article about Samsung and not Apple. Apple you'd expect to demand such ridiculous subservience, but Samsung? Maker of all manner of slightly dull electrical kit??? | |
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| 3 September 2012 3:23PM | |
| "But the Guardian has established that many of those who blog in this way do not acknowledge that they are receiving rewards for doing so – contravening the law." | |
| Genuinely Charles, what Law? I think it unethical of them not to disclose but wasn't aware there was a legal backing to it. | |
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| 3 September 2012 3:24PM | |
| Wow...That S2 in my pocket suddenly feels very dirty | |
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| 3 September 2012 3:26PM | |
| I had to blink a few times before I recognised this as an article about Samsung and not Apple. Apple you'd expect to demand such ridiculous subservience, but Samsung? Maker of all manner of slightly dull electrical kit??? | |
| Most multinational companies are as 'bad' as each other. Why wouldn't you expect this from Samsung? | |
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| 3 September 2012 3:28PM | |
| Charles I'm interested to know (if you are about - what's the Guardian's stance on you signing NDAs in order to get early access to devices? | |
| Everyone and their dog has had access to the new BB10 device and now we have a bit of a nonsense with Journalists writing articles about "rumours" and "speculations" about devices they have held, seen and used! | |
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| 3 September 2012 3:29PM | |
| And when the duo protested, Samsung withdrew their funding – leaving them stranded thousands of miles from home without a plane ticket back, nor means to pay their hotel bill. They were saved when a representative from Nokia, the Finnish phone company, stepped in to help the pair, sorting out flights and hotel costs. | |
| Ok. Maybe some companies are better than others. Good PR move Nokia. | |
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| 3 September 2012 3:31PM | |
| this is outrageous, what ever can be done to stop these monsters??!???!??! | |
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| 3 September 2012 3:36PM | |
| Y'know, you're right, but for some reason Samsung's faceless boring-ness kind of made me think such Machiavellian strategising was beyond them. Of course I was wrong. | |
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| 3 September 2012 3:49PM | |
| This comment was removed by a moderator because it didn't abide by our community standards. Replies may also be deleted. For more detail see our FAQs. | |
| 3 September 2012 3:52PM | |
| Shocking I tell you. | |
| But as long as the high sugar content of Frosties doesn't stop it being a part of a balance diet, I'm still generally ok with PR and advertising though. | |
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| 3 September 2012 3:54PM | |
| Also, I beleive the term the writer is looking for is correctly spelled "fanboi". | |
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| 3 September 2012 3:56PM | |
| There isn't a blanket policy as such. They're taken as and when they come and judged individually. Personally I dislike NDAs/embargoes, but sometimes they're the only means in the short term to get information/access. | |
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| 3 September 2012 4:19PM | |
| Interesting follow up - how the expectations were different in what the parties thought had been agreed to. | |
| So the blogger thought they were there as reporter, as initially explained, and how they were asked to be a promoter by the local PR team in India | |
| http://karanbajaj.in/blog/2012/09/03/clearing-the-air-around-samsung-moblers-vs-indian-bloggers-fiasco/ | |
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| 3 September 2012 4:21PM | |
| On thing is to have your hands on a device before its launched and be able to write whatever you want about it, and a quite different situation is to write favourably of it without saying that what you are actually doing is advertising. | |
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| 3 September 2012 4:32PM | |
| Great stuff from Nokia! Showed some class. Follow it up with some awesome new devices this Wednesday please! | |
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| 3 September 2012 4:40PM | |
| Gosh, that phone looks a bit like an iPhone. I wonder why that particular photo was selected in a negative story about Samsung... | |
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| 3 September 2012 4:52PM | |
| As linked in the piece, the law regulated by the OFT: | |
| The OFT was concerned that individuals engaged by Handpicked Media were publishing online content which promoted the activities of Handpicked Media's clients, without sufficient disclosures in place to make it clearly identifiable to consumers that the promotions had been paid for. This included publication on website blogs and microblogs (for example Twitter). | |
| As a result of its investigation, the OFT formed the view that Handpicked Media may be operating in breach of the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 (CPRs)… Following this consultation, Handpicked Media signed undertakings to comply with the law. | |
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| 3 September 2012 4:55PM | |
| Gosh, that phone looks a bit like an iPhone. I wonder why that particular photo was selected in a negative story about Samsung... | |
| Think you're being over-sensitive, plus it's probably quite hard for them to find a Samsung product that doesn't look like an Apple one. | |
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| 3 September 2012 4:57PM | |
| Genuinely Charles, what Law? I think it unethical of them not to disclose but wasn't aware there was a legal backing to it. | |
| The Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 would be a good place to start. | |
| http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2008/1277/contents/made | |
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| 3 September 2012 5:05PM | |
| True, what with their patent on rectangles. I've also got a door that looks like an iPhone as well as several diaries, a few books and a TV with a screen in the middle which, shockingly, when turned on its side looks exactly like an iPhone. | |
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| 3 September 2012 5:18PM | |
| On thing is to have your hands on a device before its launched and be able to write whatever you want about it, and a quite different situation is to write favourably of it without saying that what you are actually doing is advertising. | |
| Well that is what concerned with NDAs - you don't play ball and your early access gets cut off? | |
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| 3 September 2012 5:23PM | |
| Charles | |
| Thanks. Sorry, I failed to spot the link. | |
| I thought that this piece was about bloggers from around the world (e.g. India) being flown to other parts of the world (e.g. Berlin) as well as some brought to London. | |
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| 3 September 2012 5:24PM | |
| See my response to Charles. | |
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| 3 September 2012 5:34PM | |
| Apple has never claimed a patent on rectangles, rounded or otherwise. The "trade dress" case in the US included, in part, Apple's claim that the patented "trade dress" of the iPhone 3G includes the combination of a rectangle with rounded corners, metal bezel and unchanging bottom row of icons on the home screen. | |
| The "patent on rectangles" claim is an urban myth. That Samsung chose to repeat it in a statement after the San Jose verdict was peculiar, since the lawyers would have known that there is no such patent. | |
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| 3 September 2012 5:35PM | |
| The tech-blogs that only add information about being members of a marketing scheme to their about page or header should do more. | |
| The internet is linked to individual blog posts. It would be a lot more honest if the each post included something like "As part of our membership of Samsung's Mob!liers' scheme, Samsung suggested that we write about the newest version of ChatOn..." | |
| In fact, Samsung could require that the blogger only gets their 'points' if this text is included. | |
| I'm sent unlock codes to review software every few weeks. If I ever did write about the company or its products, I will mention my 'privileged' access. I'm lucky that Apple needs no incentive at all for people like me to write about editing and post-production software. There's more than enough writing about Final Cut Pro out there. | |
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| 3 September 2012 5:38PM | |
| ... it's probably quite hard for them to find a Samsung product that doesn't look like an Apple one | |
| You could try the Samsung blade, which looked remarkably like the Motorola Razr, which was a best-selling phone at that time. Alternatively how about the Samsung Backjack, which looked remarkably like the Blackberry phones that were so popular at that time ? | |
| Samsung has a history of ripping-off the look of whatever phone is selling well at the time. | |
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| 3 September 2012 6:41PM | |
| Apple, Nokia and others are scared to death. That's all what is about this Samsung crisis. Like or not, Samsung is a very ambitious company. Apple and Nokia are betting their existence and future on a handful of products, Samsung is practically everywhere. They make almost every component of a phone or tablet ((OLED, CPU, SSD, LET chip...). And to counter the Samsung ascension, Apple decided to fight them with Rounded Corners High Tech, what a shame. I see Samsung as the new type of IBM or Siemens, they stay strong whatever happens to the market. Now apple to keep growing, decided to go into other markets like smart TVs where Samsung is already a very strong player. I have been following IT tech for over 30 years , and the one thing that I noticed is companies who put their eggs in one basket end up dead and scavenged. If Apple keeps focusing on the competition, then it's doomed to fail and many shareholder will lose a lot of money. Remember what happened to SUN Micro systems, McNealy was so obsessed with Microsoft who was paying attention to customers. | |
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| 3 September 2012 6:43PM | |
| Oh, take off your apple tinted glasses :) | |
| Apple has claimed this. It has a EU design right and a US design patent for a rectangle with curved corners. It has tried to use this IP right in nearly every country in the world to prevent Samsung from selling its tablets. | |
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| 3 September 2012 6:51PM | |
| The tech-blogs that only add information about being members of a marketing scheme to their about page or header should do more. | |
| They should; most of the bigger reputable tech blogs do. They should also declare business interests like unrelated work they're doing w/ the subject of an article and retainers they receive. | |
| I think people usually know when they need to declare an interest and when they don't it's often deliberate. | |
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| 3 September 2012 7:15PM | |
| Is Chris Grayling moonlighting for Samsung? | |
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| 3 September 2012 8:01PM | |
| Only part of the trade dress or not, Apple IP trolling over rectangles with round corners is exactly like the analogy the Apple fanboys like to keep trying to pooh pooh: Ford claiming their cars having 4 wheels is part of their trade dress. Besides which prior art (conveniently ignored by the foreman and pro-Apple bloggers) humiliates Apple's case. End to end joke. | |
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| 3 September 2012 8:07PM | |
| There are technology companies like Nokia and Samsung and art marketing companies like Apple. | |
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| 3 September 2012 9:22PM | |
| Irony alert. | |
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| 3 September 2012 9:41PM | |
| GLASS HOUSES | |
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| 3 September 2012 9:46PM | |
| This comment was removed by a moderator because it didn't abide by our community standards. Replies may also be deleted. For more detail see our FAQs. | |
| 3 September 2012 10:00PM | |
| So they do have a patent for a device with rounded corners.. | |
| Apple actually lost the 'rounded corners' issue, its patent d087 , well usd593087... ( so much for urban myth).. | |
| As you say, it's more than just rounded corners, but not a lot more... | |
| What this means is apple can say 'make a device with square corners and we wont sue' doesn't it? | |
| This from last year is worth a read.. ( not Apple are bothered about rounded corners here as well) http://www.baekdal.com/opinion/apple-never-designed-the-ipad-they-undesigned-it/ | |
| ( though we now know that tab 10.1 DOESN'T infringe , rather wierdly). | |
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| 3 September 2012 10:06PM | |
| Pot Kettle Black ! | |
| Its not obvious how this different from all the Luv in Apple gets from the Media and Journos | |
| Just about every BBC Drama sports an Apple Logo Laptop. | |
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| 3 September 2012 10:35PM | |
| Cite the patent, then. | |
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| 3 September 2012 10:55PM | |
| Repeating myself slightly, the story above the line here is one-sided, and does not look at the full evidence. | |
| It can easily be discovered by Googling that Mob!lers in India, as elsewhere, are briefed very clearly on the nature of the programme. Here's how one Indian Mob!ler describes the briefing: | |
| ...The concept is very clear – Samsung is choosing hardcore fans, does not matter if he or she is a techie or not, to become its digital ambassadors. The concerned officials from Samsung will stay in touch with these digital ambassadors to let them know all inside scoops. And then the digital ambassadors, also known as Samsung Mob!lers, will promote Samsung products at various stages... | |
| The Mob!lers were asked NOT to write anything bad about Samsung’s competitors. Samsung wants to play it fair. | |
| The Mob!lers will provide unbiased reviews ONLY. Hence do not get surprised to see if a Mob!lers is trashing at a Samsung product... | |
| http://www.techcular.com/samsung-mobilers/ | |
| There are public lists of active Mob!lers:http://samsungmobilers.co.uk/public/users | |
| More detail is given on the case in a blog entry by Karan Bajaj, who gathered information by email from his friend Clinton Jeff on the one hand, and also got a statement from Samsung India on the other. He concludes: | |
| Now this is where Clinton is at fault – Clinton agreed to go as a promoter without understanding what it meant... | |
| ...Clearly a case of miscommunication, the whole event was blown out of proportion all over the social media. The whole ordeal with Clinton would have been a major pain for him to deal with there, especially with no help from Samsung India representative. However, the story has two sides – going through both of them shows that the bloggers as well as Samsung India representative are at fault. | |
| Karan Bajaj also links to a blog entry by Amit Bhawani which gives full details of the emails and otehr information that Samsung provide would-be Mob!lers spelling out the options (promoter & reporter) and precise details what each role involves, http://www.amitbhawani.com/blog/samsung-mobilers-ifa-2012/. | |
| Both of these posts were linked earlier by mkhanisbent in the other thread, here. | |
| Another blog post by Rajat Agrawal, entitled "Exclusive: What is Samsung’s Mob!ler program? We go deep inside!" begins as follows: | |
| Most major tech companies these days have two separate PR arms – one for the regular press and another for the blogger community. However, the opinion of who is a blogger and what a blogger is expected to do for the company has been a closely guarded secret for the public but the few who work on these projects and bloggers who participate in these programs. After our story about the Samsung blogger fiasco at IFA, an insider reached out to us on how Samsung’s Mob!ler works and it really blew my mind away considering what has happened in the past 24 hours. Read on… First things first. Samsung Mob!ler is a brand ambassador program in which people sign up to be a part of it.[...] | |
| (If you go to the Facebook sign-up page, you'll see a public list of names with photographs and blog addresses of the Mob!lers. It's all done in the open.) Agrawal's post then presents a document that Samsung sends to Mob!lers explaining what they expect the Mob!lers to do, and what they offer in return. At the end, it concludes: | |
| There is absolutely nothing wrong for any company to have a program like this. Remember, this is an opt-in program and works well for regular folks. In fact, most companies have similar programs. But for a professional blogger or a journalist joining the program is the equivalent of committing Harakiri. | |
| It's harakiri because you are publicly identified as a "brand ambassador", so you can't pretend to be fully independent and objective, the way lots of professional journalists and bloggers (naming no names) do for the sake of their credibility. | |
| Samsung India screwed up badly in this case, not because there is anything underhand or wrong about the Mob!lers programme as such, but by treating Clinton Jef and his anonymous fellow blogger extremely harshly when they refused to do what they'd signed up to do, even though their refusal might have been the product of an innocent misunderstanding, they gave a fantastic PR gift to their rivals, who are exploiting it to the full. I'm sure that when whoever it was contacted Nokia to tell them that there were a couple of Indian guys upset with Samsung and wanting a flight home, their PR team jumped for joy. | |
| Link to this comment: | |
| 3 September 2012 11:07PM | |
| suckers! at least these guys had the sense to get paid to drink the kool aid ! | |
| Link to this comment: | |
| 3 September 2012 11:12PM | |
| Response to Kipperphill, 3 September 2012 6:43PM | |
| Cite the patent, then | |
If I may interpose, I present the design patent for the iPhone 4:http://www.google.com/patents/USD636392Dotted lines in the drawing don't count. What's claimed in the front and back views is a simple round-cornered rectangle. (Everything else is dotted.) Apple claimed that Samsung is infringing that patent. | |
| Link to this comment: | |
| 3 September 2012 11:17PM | |
| so, in order to get free flights and hotel accomodation in berlin for several days worth thousands of dollars all i have to do is to wear samsung t shirt while walking around and drinking beer and eating sausages at samsung expense? count me in next time samsung! | |
| Link to this comment: | |
| 3 September 2012 11:29PM | |
| And further to davefb's comment: | |
| So they do have a patent for a device with rounded corners.. | |
| Apple actually lost the 'rounded corners' issue, its patent d087 , well usd593087... ( so much for urban myth).. | |
| This one, too. It's a design patent for the original iPhone. Here's a link to the patent: http://www.google.com/patents/USD593087 What's claimed in various figures are (a) a rounded rectangular bezel with a rectangular screen covering most of the pane inside, (b) a rounded rectangular bezel with a circular button centred near the bottom, (c) a round rectangular bezel with a narrow oblong centred near the top. (These are distinct claims.) Apple claim Samsung infringes this patent, too. | |
| Link to this comment: | |
| 3 September 2012 11:44PM | |
| Not that surprising when you consider that Samsung are basically rip-off merchants with no ethics whatsoever. | |
| Link to this comment: | |
| 3 September 2012 11:56PM | |
| Apple has never claimed a patent on rectangles, rounded or otherwise. The "trade dress" case in the US included, in part, Apple's claim that the patented "trade dress" of the iPhone 3G includes the combination of a rectangle with rounded corners, metal bezel and unchanging bottom row of icons on the home screen. | |
| Wrong. Here's the design patent USD615,083. In Figure one, we see a simple rounded rectangle, no icons are visible. Apart from the oblong of the speaker, everything else is dotted out. What is being claimed is the shape of the front of the phone (which happens to be, as noted, a rectangle with rounded corners):http://www.google.com/patents/USD615083 | |
| The "patent on rectangles" claim is an urban myth. | |
| It's not. It's a documented fact. The documents are published by the USPTO. | |
| Link to this comment: | |
| 4 September 2012 12:03AM | |
| when we reviewed Apple related hardware and software, gadgets, etc. we ALWAYS ensured that the newspaper or magzine highlighted we were doing so as the Mac User Group . michael | |
| MUG Singapore | |
| Link to this comment: | |
| 4 September 2012 1:07AM | |
| Thanks for the effort. Really appreciate it as I like Samsung and was worried for a bit there. | |
| Here is to hoping CA would write a follow up based on new developments. | |
| Link to this comment: | |
| 4 September 2012 1:08AM | |
| And someone should pls tell CA to stop about the patent "myth". It's quite embarrassing | |
| Link to this comment: | |
| 4 September 2012 1:29AM | |
| I noticed that too. I have a big flatscreen Tv made by them from 2006, that looks exactly like an iPhone. All black, rounded rectangles, big screen. Even some chrome on the side along with a few minimal buttons for volume. This is no kidding! Maybe Apple copied Samsung? | |
| Link to this comment: | |
| 4 September 2012 1:53AM | |
| This comment was removed by a moderator because it didn't abide by our community standards. Replies may also be deleted. For more detail see our FAQs. | |
| Comments on this page are now closed. | |
| Apple and Samsung urged to make peace by patent trial judge | |
| 16 Aug 2012 | |
| Tech giants' chief executives advised to explore a settlement, as high-stakes case over iPhone and iPad designs heads to jury. By Charles Arthur | |
| 2 Oct 2012 | |
| Samsung gets Galaxy tablet sales ban lifted in US | |
| 28 Oct 2011 | |
| Samsung overtakes Apple to become world smartphone leader | |
| 5 Sep 2012 | |
| Samsung accused of exploiting younger workers in China | |
| 25 Aug 2012 | |
| Apple awarded more than $1bn in Samsung patent infringement trial | |
| Samsung may hit Apple with iPhone 4S ban | |
| 5 Oct 2011 | |
| Apple could face court injunctions to halt sale of new iPhone 4S as Samsung says it breaches patents it owns. By Charles Arthur | |
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| Indian pair were stranded in Berlin after they refused to work on Samsung booths | |
| For the two technology bloggers from India, it looked like a dream invitation from the electronics giant Samsung: it would pay for their flights and accommodation to cover the IFA trade fair in Berlin, where the season's biggest tech announcements are made, under an outreach programme called "Samsung Mobilers". | |
| But the dream turned sour when Clinton Jeff and a colleague were told on arriving that they would be issued with uniforms and expected to work as staff on the booths – showing off new Samsung products to the press, rather than writing about them. | |
| And when the duo protested, Samsung withdrew their funding – leaving them stranded thousands of miles from home without a plane ticket back, nor means to pay their hotel bill. They were saved when a representative from Nokia, the Finnish phone company, stepped in to help the pair, sorting out flights and hotel costs. | |
| Though Samsung said there had been a "misunderstanding", the Guardian has established that France Quiqueré, a French technology blogger, has levelled a similar complaint, which the Guardian has established is also against Samsung. | |
| The incidents have exposed a dark underbelly to technology reporting and blogging – in which companies offer rewards to bloggers, who often do not acknowledge that they are writing posts not for their news value to readers, but because they want to get free products and even trips. Not disclosing such motives is against Advertising Standards Authority rules laid down in 2009, as well as the consumer protection law, as shown by a 2010 investigation by the Office of Fair Trading against a company called Handpicked Media. | |
| Quiqueré, who has been a "brand ambassador" for Samsung since 2010, was told she had won a competition to come at the company's expense to the Olympics in London in August, along with a group of bloggers. She went expecting to be a guest at events, because Samsung was a major sponsor of the Olympics, for which it paid more than $100m. | |
| Instead the group found that the six-day trip involved barely any visits to events. Instead they were meant to create promotional videos and photos, and fill out daily reports on what they had done. They were also instructed to upload videos of promotional events to their personal YouTube accounts – an instruction that Quiqueré resisted strongly. She says that by the end of the five-day trip she saw two events – a table-tennis semifinal and a volleyball eliminator. "We didn't have the chance to see the Olympic stadium or participate [in] other festive events related to the Olympics," Quiqueré complained. "The most embarrassing thing is the surreal feeling of being trapped." | |
| All the bloggers were part of Samsung's "Mobilers" programme, a multi-country PR scheme described in the UK as "an exclusive network of bloggers who are first in line to trial and review the latest Samsung products, for free!". The scheme is aimed at bloggers seen as influential by Samsung. They are encouraged to write posts about Samsung products – with subjects suggested multiple times a week – for which they earn points towards "rewards". | |
| But the Guardian has established that many of those who blog in this way do not acknowledge that they are receiving rewards for doing so – contravening the law. | |
| The plight of the Indian bloggers was first exposed by technology news site The Next Web, which calls the Mobilers programme "Samsung's fanboy factory" (a "fanboy" being an uncritical supporter of a brand, group or team). However, the pair have been criticised by peers, who said Jeff and his colleague were naive and misunderstood the communications from Samsung India. | |
| Jeff and his companion blogger from India, who does not want to be named, were members of the Samsung India Mobilers programme. But they were shocked by their experience at IFA, one of the world's biggest technology shows. They insist they had told Samsung that they would only travel if they could work as independent journalists and look at other companies' stands at the show. Such opportunities are rare for Indian bloggers; they had thought that the quid pro quo would be to get early views of new Samsung products which they could blog about – thus satisfying themselves and Samsung. | |
| However, Samsung representatives at the show insisted that they had agreed to be "promoters" of the product, which entailed wearing a uniform and showing off the products at its booth. When Jeff and his colleague declined to take part, they say, a Samsung India representative told them that they would be brought back immediately, unless they agreed to appear at a Samsung event wearing company T-shirts. | |
| After doing that, Jeff talked to a friend who contacted Nokia, which agreed to pay the duo's plane flights and hotel costs without, Jeff says, requiring any coverage or mention in return. | |
| Samsung said in a statement: "Samsung Mobilers is a voluntary community of active Samsung mobile device users, who are offered the opportunity to participate in our marketing events across the world. At these events, all activities they undertake are on a voluntary basis. No activities are forced upon them. | |
| "We regret there was a misunderstanding between the Samsung Mobilers coordinators and the relevant blogger, as we understand he was not sufficiently briefed on the nature of Samsung Mobilers' activities at IFA 2012. We have been attempting to get in touch with him. We respect the independence of bloggers to publish their own stories." | |
| The Mobilers marketing programme is open to bloggers, though Samsung determines who takes part. In the UK, it has more than 50 members in the scheme, and dozens more in every other country where it runs. | |
| Members are given "missions" in which they are asked to promote products or features. On the UK site, for example, the current one is to showcase the functionality of the S-Voice speech control system on the Galaxy S3 smartphone, while others have made simpler requests: "please could you write and share a short post about the Samsung Olympic Pins competition?" or more recently "create something to show the best of the exclusive Samsung Official Top 40 app". | |
| Members then take up the "mission" by writing posts to fulfil them, for which they earn points. One example is at droid-den, which earned a "Mobiler point" for a post about the Samsung Galaxy S3's "pop-up play". The post and page contains no mention that it was written at the urging or for a reward from Samsung, although Rachid Otsmane-Elhaou, based in Manchester, who runs the blog and wrote the post, acknowledges his membership of the scheme in the blog's "about" page. | |
| Otsmane-Elhaou did not respond to a Guardian request for comment. But other posts by Samsung Mobilers bloggers also failed to disclose their participation in the programme. | |
| Rich Leigh, co-founder of bloggabase.com, a blog database that aims to connect bloggers with marketers, said: "Bloggers should make it clear that they are being paid or being given freebies to review. Whether this is done in an obvious way within the body of the text or a simple declaration at the end of the post, it's always within the blogger's best interests to keep their nose clean here. It'll help build reader trust and ensure transparency." | |
| Sally Whittle, founder of Tots100, reckoned to be the UK's largest network of parent blogs, and who runs her own site Who's the Mummy, said: "Disclosure is a real hot topic – most bloggers know they should disclose, but there's no single way to do it. I see things being marked as 'sponsored', 'featured' and all sorts of things in between. We try and educate people that disclosure is a legal requirement but I think sometimes people are wary of putting off their readers, or being seen as having 'sold out' – readership can go down on posts where freebies are being received by the blogger." | |
| She added: "There have been a few cases of people being called out for not disclosing – there was a recent kerfuffle with a beauty box provider, for example, where bloggers were writing about the boxes but not disclosing they'd got them free – and the boxes they received seemed to be better than the ones readers were purchasing." | |
| Rachel Clarke, head of social media at the marketing agency Momentum UK, said: "Legally, bloggers should disclose this because it's paid advertising." She said she was surprised by the reports of the bloggers' experience at IFA with Samsung, which she said has "done a lot of good promotions in the past". | |
| But she said as companies and bloggers interact more frequently – with companies trying to build up a groundswell of coverage for products that news sites might not – misunderstandings and differences in expectation could arise more often. "There's a growing expectation from bloggers that they will get VIP treatment, but that might not be what companies are offering," she said. | |
| Whittle said sometimes it is the brands which pressure bloggers not to disclose their involvement: "we did a survey a month or so back and found that one in three of our members has been asked by a PR or SEO agency not to disclose a freebie or paid content – because the brands want links but don't want to risk being clobbered by Google for buying follow links. Some bloggers have had a lot of pressure on this score, with some brands asking for refunds or withholding payment if a blogger discloses a freebie or payment on a post." |