Samsung has drawn criticism Monday after viewers realized that it was reusing a child actress from an iPhone 4S ad for a Galaxy Tab 8.9 LTE spot. The 30-second segment (below), since pulled from Samsung’s official YouTube account, has the same actress as seen in an iPhone 4S camera ad. It also takes a slightly Apple-like tack in focusing on the human side of using a tablet rather than Samsung’s usual emphasis on hardware.
The choice is somewhat unusual given that the ad has so far aired on TV only in Samsung’s native Korea. AT&T sells the Galaxy Tab 8.9 LTE in the US, but it might not compel Samsung to run the same ad.
Reusing actors isn’t uncommon in commercials, where there’s often a limited pool of talent. It’s possible Samsung may have unintentionally picked the same girl because she was the best or only one available at recording time.
The choice still comes at an awkward point for Samsung, as it’s facing numerous lawsuits and trade disputes for allegedly copying the iPad with its existing Galaxy Tab line. Fueling suspicion may be Samsung’s demonstrated overeagerness to beat Apple directly; it vowed to change the Galaxy Tab 10.1 after being caught off-guard by the iPad 2 and, conveniently, had a better design in just five weeks
