About a year ago, I was in my parents’ living room, where a new TV sat in its box, waiting to be set up. My sister-in-law pointed to a woman on the packaging and said, “Oh, that’s Dua Lipa!” I barely know who she is, so I didn’t think it was unusual for the singer to be featured on the box. But at least one person thinks it's a big deal: Lipa herself.
On Friday, Lipa filed a lawsuit against Samsung for using her image on some of its TV boxes, alleging that its use constitutes copyright infringement, trademark infringement, and a violation of her right of publicity. The complaint (PDF), filed in the US District Court for the Central District of California, says that Lipa owns all “rights, title, and interest in the image titled ‘Dua Lipa - Backstage at Austin City Limits, 2024.’”
“Samsung mass-manufactured, distributed (or caused to be distributed) marketed, and sold in interstate commerce across the United States a vast number of its televisions in various sizes in these cardboard boxes containing the [image],” the lawsuit says.
