It"s fair to say that Apple and Samsung have a tempestuous relationship, at least when it comes to consumer goods. The landmark copyright infringement case from a few years ago signaled a shift in how Samsung operated, causing them to rethink how their phones were designed and ushering in new devices, such as the latest Galaxy S6 and S6 edge.
However, it would seem that the company is still drawing influence from Cupertino, this time in terms of advertising. In a new advert entitled "Designing Possible," a British male voice talks about the design process of the new Galaxy S6 edge, instantly evoking memories of Apple"s videos that feature Jony Ive talking over them.
This in and of itself would be fairly innocuous (Apple doesn"t have copyright over a British voice speaking on adverts) except for the fact that some scenes are very reminiscent of Apple"s new video, promoting the Apple Watch Edition. Given Samsung"s history, it would not be unreasonable to suspect Apple"s work may have influenced the company.
In Apple"s video, entitled "Gold," there are shots of molten metal being poured and various production line sequences. Jony Ive speaks over the video, talking about the process Apple goes through in order to make the gold used in the Edition, which sells for $10,000 and up.
Samsung"s advertising has traditionally been focused on parodying Apple fans, especially their penchant for lining up outside Stores before a new product becomes available. Shifting away from this is objectively a good idea, but the new ads do feel a little bit too familiar.