Dua Lipa files $15m lawsuit against Samsung for using her face without permission

Dua Lipa is suing Samsung for $15 million in a fight over the use of the pop star’s image. The British singer, 30, filed the massive lawsuit against the electronics giant Friday, alleging that Samsung used a picture of her face to sell TVs without getting her permission or offering her any payment. “Ms. Lipa’s face was prominently used for a mass marketing campaign for a consumer product without her knowledge, without consideration, and as to which she had no say, control, or input whatsoever,” the filing alleges. “Ms. Lipa did not allow and would not have allowed this use.” According to the complaint, Samsung allegedly began putting Lipa’s image on marketing materials and cardboard boxes carrying its TVs all over the world at the start of 2025. Lipa owns the copyright to the picture in question, which was taken backstage at the Austin City Limits Festival in 2024. When Lipa found out about the advertising, she asked Samsung to stop using the picture, but the suit alleges that the company was “dismissive and callous” and refused her request. The suit alleges that Samsung has earned money from using Lipa’s picture and appearing to have her endorsement, which it does not. The filing includes comments from Lipa’s fans on X, which suggest that some customers were inspired to buy Samsung’s TVs because they thought Lipa had endorsed the product. “I wasn’t even planning on buying a tv but I saw the box so I decided to get it,” one comment quoted in the complaint said. Another wrote on Instagram, “I’d get that TV just because Dua Lipa is on it.” Lipa’s lawsuit accuses Samsung of copyright infringement, right of publicity violation and false endorsement. The superstar is seeking at least $15 million in damages, as well as the profits that Samsung made due to their alleged use of her image. Lipa’s team alleges that Samsung violated California’s right of publicity law, a federal Lanham Act claim and trademark claims, which protect celebrities from their public identities being used for unauthorized commercial reasons. Samsung and Lipa’s representatives did not immediately return The Independent’s request for comment. This is not the first time that Lipa has had to protect her image in court. Last year, Lipa won a lawsuit against two songwriters that claimed she copied the melody of her hit song “Levitating” from disco tracks they had written. Songwriters L Russell Brown and Sandy Linzer sued Lipa in 2022 and accused her of copying their 1979 track “Wiggle and Giggle All Night” and their 1980 song “Don Diablo.” However, the judge concluded that the similar elements of the songs “lacked sufficient originality alone” to be protected under copyright law.