Pop star Dua Lipa has reportedly filed a lawsuit seeking about $15 million in damages against Samsung Electronics, alleging the company used a photo of her face without permission, according to an article published by the U.S. entertainment media outlet Variety on Saturday.

The singer recently filed a damages suit against Samsung Electronics and Samsung Electronics America in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

"The complaint alleges a copyright violation, a violation of the California right of publicity statute, a federal Lanham Act claim and trademark claims," reported Variety.

Samsung has used a photo of Lipa’s face on the exterior packaging of its televisions since last year, according to the suit. Lipa’s legal team claimed the company refused to stop using the image even after the singer's team asked it to.

The photo in question was taken backstage at the Austin City Limits Festival in Austin in 2024, and Lipa’s side stated in the complaint that she owns the copyright to the image.

“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,” said the lawsuit. “Ms. Lipa did not allow and would not have allowed this use.”

Variety reported that it contacted Samsung for comment but did not receive a response.

The British singer debuted in 2015 with the single “New Love” (2015) and rose to fame after her first full-length album, “Dua Lipa” (2017) reached No. 3 on the British Albums Chart in 2017. The singer has won three Grammy Awards.


This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY JUNG SI-NAE [lee.jiwon10@joongang.co.kr]