According to Korea Herald, an official familiar with the internal situation of Samsung Electronics said: "There will be risks when promoting a controversial person on social networks as a brand ambassador, regardless of the size of the fandom." to where. This is a serious issue and requires careful consideration."
The source added that Samsung will not take immediate action to remove Suga from advertisements, because the company has signed a brand ambassador contract with BTS , not just Suga.
"Unless he leaves BTS, Samsung cannot remove Suga from promotions at this time. The situation needs to be monitored for a while longer," the source revealed.
Samsung currently refuses to comment on this issue.
Previously, on August 17, Samsung Germany deleted promotional photos of Suga holding the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra posted to the company's official X account on August 15-16.
Many netizens, both in Korea and abroad, questioned whether it was appropriate to continue to feature Suga in ads in the context of his being accused of drunk driving.
Samsung and BTS started collaborating in February 2020. This partnership marks the Kpop group becoming a global ambassador for Samsung smartphone products. Samsung has even released BTS-themed versions of the Galaxy S20+ and Galaxy Buds+.
In August 2022, a collaborative video featuring BTS and a new Samsung product was shown on the iconic screen of Times Square in New York.
Last July, Suga also unexpectedly appeared at the Galaxy Unpacked event in Seoul (South Korea), further highlighting this partnership.
Suga has repeatedly shown his special affection for Samsung products as a brand ambassador. He attracted attention when he declared: "There is no iPhone, only Galaxy" during his world tour concert in the US in April 2023. The male singer announced that he would only take selfies with fans using Samsung's Galaxy phone.
The Samsung - BTS partnership is part of the leading home appliance and consumer electronics company's strategy to leverage BTS's global popularity and youthful image to attract a wide audience. wider audience, especially Millennials and Generation Z.
Meanwhile, on August 23, Suga (BTS) was questioned by the police about the incident that occurred late on the evening of August 6. He was accused of driving an electric vehicle while drunk . His blood alcohol level was measured at 0.227%, the highest level ever reported in drunk driving cases involving Kpop artists.
