During an extravagant release event that included orchestra accompaniment and all-star Broadway producers, Samsung introduced its Galaxy S4 smartphone to the market. The event at the historic Radio City Music Hall in New York City on March 14 marked the latest product to be released by the tech giant.

The product release was a spectacle for the audience, according to a March 18 article on TheVerge.com. But the company’s portrayal of women during the release has raised controversy.

Samsung followed in competitor Apple’s footsteps with an over-the-top performance to accompany its newest product.

Apple hosted a lavish presentation in September for the release of the iPhone 5, which included a performance from the Grammy-nominated band The Foo Fighters, according to a Sept. 12 article published by Rolling Stone Magazine.

Edward Russell, associate professor of advertising at the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, said launches are a significant part of introducing a new product.

“It can be really important to create a successful launch,” he said. “I mean, half of the people standing in line at an Apple release are usually being paid. They will create an illusion.”

But at the Samsung release, several global media outlets criticized the dramatic presentations onstage. To showcase the new features of the smartphone, Samsung used a script and ensemble of actors and actresses who role-played various circumstances.

According to a March 15 CNN Money article, the sexist undertones in Samsung’s casting and script were apparent. While there is a fast-growing target market for women purchasing smartphones across the industry, Samsung made several generalizations that appeared sexist.

CNN referenced a portion of the performance during which an actress utilized the hovering swipe feature to unlock the phone while her nails were drying.

In another scene, a housewife glances up from her smartphone, where she had been watching a video, to gaze at an attractive gardener outside. The video paused as she looked away, then restarted once her eyes were fixated back on the screen, demonstrating the phone’s ability to track users’ eyes, according to a March 14 Los Angeles Times article.

The performance, which was seen as unusual for the launch of a tech product, had a rippling effect across social media, according to the article.

Hayley Loft, a junior advertising major, said she didn’t understand Samsung’s choice to depict women this way, as technology is no longer a “guy thing.”

“I have a lot of news apps and don’t understand why they wouldn’t focus on them as much in their presentation,” she said. “But I also use Instagram and Snapchat, and while those are predominantly used by females, it’s not in any way designed for women.”

The show’s producers struggled to satisfy the corporate needs of Samsung while balancing the storyline of the performance, according to the article on TheVerge.com.

Samsung allegedly shot down the proposal of having a female narrator, as well as other performances that detracted from its intended message regarding female users, according to the article.

Published on March 25, 2013 at 10:58 pm

Contact Jared: jmrose03@syr.edu