Fresh blow for Samsung as Verizon shifts marketing priorities
US carrier Verizon has signalled it may shift its key Christmas marketing away from Samsung’s combustible Galaxy Note 7 handset toward other lines going into the holiday run-up, after the South Korean manufacturer urged owners not to switch on their devices until it gets to the bottom of reports that some handsets can catch fire.
The latest warning follows a global recall of 2.5m of the flagship phones last month after faulty batteries were identified as the source of a number of reported fires.
Verizon spokeswoman Kelly Crummey said: “We have the new iPhone, we’re about to launch the new Google Pixel, which is exclusive to us. We’ve got great phones from Motorola as well. I think you’ll see our marketing focused on those devices because there is certainty on those at this time.”
Verizon says it will wait for the outcome of a US government investigation into the Galaxy Note 7 before formalising its marketing budgets.
The Drum's editor, Stephen Lepitak, discusses why Samsung will now forever be known as the company that made the exploding phone.