Dua Lipa Files $15M Lawsuit Against Samsung Over Unauthorized Image Use

A $15 million lawsuit has been filed by Dua Lipa against Samsung, the South Korean electronics giant, over the unauthorized use of her image. The singer claims the company placed her picture on product packaging without her consent.

Filed on Friday in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, the complaint, as reported by Variety, alleges that Samsung has been using a photo of Lipa performing at the Austin City Limits Festival on television boxes since last year. When Lipa discovered this, she contacted the company requesting the image be removed, but Samsung allegedly responded dismissively and rejected her demand.

The legal filing states: “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.” It further asserts that Lipa never granted permission for such use and would not have done so.

Despite owning the copyright to the photo, Samsung is accused of profiting from Lipa’s endorsement. The lawsuit points to social media posts on X as evidence of the commercial impact, including one tweet where a person wrote: “I wasn’t even planning on buying a TV, but I saw the box, so I decided to get it.” Another tweet suggested Lipa’s image was a deciding factor in purchasing the product.

The complaint argues that Lipa maintains a “premium brand” and only associates her face with select companies, making Samsung’s alleged infringement particularly harmful. The lawsuit includes claims of copyright infringement, violation of California’s right-of-publicity statute, a Lanham Act claim, and trademark infringement.