Samsung’s Note 7 woes are hitting back again and again in one form or another. After facing a drop in its stock price, two recalls, accusations of bribery, and reports of rivals racing ahead, the Korean firm has now been targeted with YouTube videos in which the Note 7 is shown as a hand grenade.
Note 7 or a grenade?
In one video by YouTube user HitmanNiko showing a Grand Theft Auto 5 mod, the Galaxy Note 7 is used as a grenade. But this did not sit well with Samsung, which already is facing several issues thanks to its exploding Note 7.
It appears that Samsung is making every effort to block this video and others like it from the Internet. HitmanNiko’s video has now been removed from YouTube, and instead, it displays a message saying the video is “no longer available due to a copyright claim by Samsung Electronics America.” If you haven’t watched the video, don’t worry; there are other similar videos.
The GTA franchise – popular for the use of weapons like C4 bombs and machine guns – allows third-party developers to come up with their own modifications for the game, and the Note 7 bomb is one such mod. It allows the player to select the Note 7 by toggling through weapons and throwing it before it explodes. Players are allowed to throw the handset at vehicles or people and even from atop an aircraft.
Samsung misusing DMCA
As of now, it is not known if the original uploader has appealed Samsung’s request, but Samsung’s action did raise some questions. According to Redmond Pie, a big problem here “is arguably the worst misuse of the DMCA we have ever come across, simply because nothing was copied, unless Samsung is trying to claim that by making the in-game grenades look like Galaxy Note 7 smartphones then the video creator was in fact in breach of copyright.”
Whatever will finally prevail in the court is not known for now, but one thing is that instead of wasting time making such copyright infringement claims, it would have been much better if Samsung utilized the time to make batteries that don’t explode.
More problems for Samsung
Amid all this, there is one more problem rising for Samsung. Several users who have suffered property damage because of a Note 7 explosion say that the Korean firm is resisting paying compensation, claims The Guardian. One user named John Barwick, who experienced repair bills of around $9,000 due to his Note 7, says the Korean firm is not ready to pay the full amount.
“They told me they weren’t going to pay replacement costs of any damaged items. We were asking to have our carpet replaced, and to have the goods that were sprayed on replaced. We sent them photos,” he said.
Instead, the Korean company is offering to pay the depreciated value of the items. It’s obvious that the global recall of the Note 7 is taking a huge toll on the company, but it must not (and can’t afford) be seen pressing users over every dollar of compensation.
