Dua Lipa has taken Samsung to court, accusing the electronics giant of using her image without permission to promote televisions and seeking $15 million in damages. The claim is a reminder that celebrity endorsements are not a gray area in marketing law: if a brand wants the halo effect of a famous face, it usually has to pay for the privilege.
According to the complaint, Samsung put a photo of the singer on TV packaging last year. Lipa says that once she found out, she demanded the company stop. The lawsuit says Samsung brushed off that request, then kept going anyway – a move that, if proven, is the kind of shortcut that can turn a marketing stunt into a very expensive legal mess.
What the lawsuit says
The filing says the image was used in a mass consumer campaign without Lipa’s knowledge, compensation, control, or participation. It also argues that Samsung benefited by creating the impression that she endorsed the product, even though she had not agreed to it.
The complaint says the photo was taken backstage at Austin City Limits in 2024, and that the copyright belongs to Lipa herself. That detail matters because this is not just a publicity-rights fight; it also opens the door to copyright claims, which can give plaintiffs more leverage than a standard likeness dispute.
Samsung TV ads and the brand claim
Lipa’s legal team says she has spent years building a premium image and is selective about endorsements. That is textbook celebrity-brand management, and brands know it well: a loose association can be as valuable as a paid ad, which is exactly why courts tend to look hard at unauthorized use. Samsung, for its part, had not responded at the time of publication.
The case was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California and includes claims tied to copyright infringement, California’s right of publicity, the federal Lanham Act, and trademark issues. With global consumer brands increasingly leaning on celebrity imagery across packaging, social media, and retail displays, expect more lawsuits like this whenever a company confuses ”inspired by” with ”we can just use it.”
What happens next
The next move is likely procedural rather than glamorous: Samsung will either answer the complaint or try to narrow it, while Lipa’s side presses the argument that the company went beyond carelessness and into deliberate misuse. If the photo stayed on packaging after the initial objection, that detail could end up doing a lot of heavy lifting in court.