Apple promotes The Beatles with ad, free iBook; Samsung again mocks iPhone users

Posted:
in iPod + iTunes + AppleTV edited January 2014
Celebrating the one-year anniversary of the arrival of The Beatles' catalog to iTunes, Apple is promoting the band's music with a new TV ad, while also showcasing a new free "Yellow Submarine" interactive e-book on the iBookstore. Meanwhile, Samsung has released another TV spot mocking iPhone users, this time over music and movie storage.



Covers



Apple's new TV ad, entitled "Covers," animates the album covers from The Beatles' prolific career to the song "Magical Mystery Tour," as pointed out by MacRumors.



"Let iTunes take you on a journey through The Beatles, from Please, Please Me, all the way to Abbey Road," the commercial's description reads on Apple's YouTube page.



In addition to the spot, an iBooks exclusive interactive e-book featuring the band's music has arrived on Apple's digital bookstore. According to a press release, "Yellow Submarine" features a "kaleidoscopic, music-filled journey" with animated illustrations from a 2004 book, full-color video clips from the 1968 film and audio from the band and the film's score. The book also offers "read aloud" functionality narrated by actor Dean Lennox Kelly.



After years of negotiations between Apple and the band's parent company Apple Corp, The Beatles' music arrived on the iTunes store last November. The two companies had previously disagreed over the "Apple" trademark before resolving the dispute in 2007.







In the first week of iTunes availability alone, customers bought 450,000 albums and 2 million songs of the group's music. In January, Beatles sales on iTunes had reached 5 million songs and 1 million albums. Apple Corps reported on Friday that worldwide sales of the catalog on iTunes have now reached 10 million songs and 1.8 million albums.



Reports have suggested that Apple's unique deal with Apple Corps may be more lucrative than standard contracts with other artists. Apple is said to have bested rivals Google and Amazon to gain exclusive digital rights to the band's catalog last year.



The next big thing



South Korean electronics maker Samsung has released a second television ad poking fun at Apple and its customer base and promoting its Samsung Galaxy S II smartphone. The new spot appears to be part of a series, as it looks to have been filmed on the same Universal Studios back-lot and uses some of the same actors as the original.







The commercial opens on a line in Boston, MA with a Samsung user stopping to greet his iPhone-toting friends. "Woah, you guys are still here?" he said.



His friends responded by saying, "36 hours is a small price to pay" to keep all their music and movies.



"Well, I have all my playlists right here, my music streams from the cloud and I have tons of places to buy my movies," the Samsung user said. "What are you guys giving up?"



They answered: sleep, vacation days, and "the feeling in my legs," as the text, "The next big thing is already here," appeared on screen.



Samsung's first "Next Big Thing" ad caricatured Apple fans waiting in line, assumedly for the iPhone 4S. Samsung's view of the typical iPhone user was stereotyped during the spot. For instance, one customer said he was disappointed that he couldn't show off the new iPhone because it had the same form factor, while another, a barista, vowed never to use Samsung because he was "creative."



Samsung Galaxy S II, photo via Cnet.



Though Samsung's advertising tactics have thus far maintained a relatively friendly tone, Apple and its rival do mean serious business in the legal arena. The two have become adversaries in an international intellectual property battle over smartphones and tablets. Most recently, Apple complained to a U.S. judge that Samsung was stalling in order to delay a trial.



A U.S. district judge recently denied Apple's request for an injunction of four of Samsung's mobile devices, but Apple filed an appeal this week.



Samsung won back a small victory against Apple this month when an Australian court reversed an injunction against its Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet. The device is expected to go on sale in the country early next week.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 131
    Yawn. If you're standing in line at the Apple Store, you're not half-committed to the iPhone. Nice try, Sammy.
  • Reply 2 of 131
    apple ][apple ][ Posts: 9,233member
    I saw a few pictures today of that line from Grand Central.



    Samsung would kill just to have one tenth of the amount of people lining up for any of their products.



    And why do some people get offended when I mock Fandroids? What goes around, comes around. I agree with Steve Jobs, and thermonuclear war should be deployed against Android and Fandroids. They should be mocked, ridiculed and their pathetic OS should be treated like the garbage that it is.
  • Reply 3 of 131
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Suddenly Newton View Post


    Yawn. If you're standing in line at the Apple Store, you're not half-committed to the iPhone. Nice try, Sammy.



    Ok the first commercial was a tiny bit funny whatever I could see it...but now it's just getting stupid. I think it would have more of an affect on potential costumers if people were lining up for the samsung lol
  • Reply 4 of 131
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by LatinaC09 View Post


    Ok the first commercial was a tiny bit funny whatever I could see it...but now it's just getting stupid. I think it would have more of an affect on potential costumers if people were lining up for the samsung lol



    eh...the commercials are good...but childish IMO.



    I like that one Samsung commercial that people here have said is real Apple-like...and I like the Nexus "Calling All" commercial...and I feel those are better.



    This just creates more division in an already heated environment.
  • Reply 5 of 131
    tylerk36tylerk36 Posts: 1,037member
    Sammy wants me to like them by mocking us (iPhone owners). Hmm. If I like my iPhone and I would stand in line for one and sammy makes me out to be stupid does that mean sammy is intimidated?
  • Reply 6 of 131
    conradjoeconradjoe Posts: 1,887member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AppleInsider View Post




    The commercial opens on a line in Boston, MA






    Actually, no, it does not, despite what you are told by the caption.
  • Reply 7 of 131
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by tylerk36 View Post


    Sammy wants me to like them by mocking us (iPhone owners). Hmm. If I like my iPhone and I would stand in line for one and sammy makes me out to be stupid does that mean sammy is intimidated?



    they aren't after you.
  • Reply 8 of 131
    Samsung's commercials are just so much corporate masturbation. Apple's getting all the hot babes, so...
  • Reply 9 of 131
    So I should get the samsung because if I want the iPhone I will have in a line up for 36 hours?



    I didn't know - I thought I could just order an iPhone on line or go to an ATT or Apple store....



    Also - I know lots of iPhone users want to increase the LCD at least up to the size of the current frame, but it looks like when Samsung put the iPhone on the copier, someone had left the copier set to enlarge mode
  • Reply 10 of 131
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Mister Snitch View Post


    Samsung's commercials are just so much corporate masturbation. Apple's getting all the hot babes, so...



    too funny
  • Reply 11 of 131
    nagrommenagromme Posts: 2,834member
    These ads clearly really understand WHY people prefer iOS, and are bound to lure lots of iOS users away
  • Reply 11 of 131
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Right_said_fred View Post


    So I should get the samsung because if I want the iPhone I will have in a line up for 36 hours?



    I didn't know - I thought I could just order an iPhone on line or go to an ATT or Apple store....



    Also - I know lots of iPhone users want to increase the LCD at least up to the size of the current frame, but it looks like when Samsung put the iPhone on the copier, someone had left the copier set to enlarge mode



    they aren't after you...plus that's not what they're saying at all...and it's kind of obvious.
  • Reply 13 of 131
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by nagromme View Post


    These ads clearly really understand WHY people prefer iOS, and are bound to lure lots of iOS users away



    They aren't after iOS users...well iOS worshippers...



    people who don't really care too much about iOS like that and people who are considering any option for smartphones are the customers.
  • Reply 14 of 131
    The Samsung user said. "What are you guys giving up?"



    They answered: sleep, vacation days, and "the feeling in my legs," as the text, "The next big thing is already here," appeared on screen.



    Samsung is correct, "The next big thing is already here." Introducing iPhone 4S.



    The Samsung user said. "What are you guys giving up?" I can tell you exactly what I am giving up.



    Atrocious customer satisfaction rates

    Battery life issues

    Carrier bloatware

    Ecosystem issues

    Fragmentation

    Hardware failures

    Killing apps

    Lag

    Malware

    Memory corruptions

    Memory illegal accesses

    Poor customer service

    Poor monetization for developers

    Resource leaks

    Unavailability of upgrades
  • Reply 15 of 131
    solipsismxsolipsismx Posts: 19,566member
    Another solid ad for Samsung to convince those that see anything Apple as a culture to buy Samsng's non-Apple product over some other brand's non-Apple product.



    The question is how many of these people who don't buy on merit are there? I know a few anti-Apple haters roam these forums but I can't imagine millions exist.
  • Reply 16 of 131
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by MacBook Pro View Post


    The Samsung user said. "What are you guys giving up?" I can tell you exactly what I am giving up.



    Atrocious customer satisfaction rates

    Battery life issues

    Carrier bloatware

    Ecosystem issues

    Fragmentation

    Hardware failures

    Killing apps

    Lag

    Malware

    Memory corruptions

    Memory illegal accesses

    Poor customer service

    Poor monetization for developers

    Resource leaks

    Unavailability of upgrades



    Nice. Makes you wonder who are the types that go for it.
  • Reply 17 of 131
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by MacBook Pro View Post


    The Samsung user said. "What are you guys giving up?"



    They answered: sleep, vacation days, and "the feeling in my legs," as the text, "The next big thing is already here," appeared on screen.



    Samsung is correct, "The next big thing is already here." Introducing iPhone 4S.



    The Samsung user said. "What are you guys giving up?" I can tell you exactly what I am giving up.



    Atrocious customer satisfaction rates

    Battery life issues

    Carrier bloatware

    Ecosystem issues

    Fragmentation

    Hardware failures

    Killing apps

    Lag

    Malware

    Memory corruptions

    Memory illegal accesses

    Poor customer service

    Poor monetization for developers

    Resource leaks

    Unavailability of upgrades



    what's a killing app?
  • Reply 18 of 131
    gtrgtr Posts: 3,231member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Apple ][ View Post


    I saw a few pictures today of that line from Grand Central.



    Samsung would kill just to have one tenth of the amount of people lining up for any of their products.



    And why do some people get offended when I mock Fandroids? What goes around, comes around. I agree with Steve Jobs, and thermonuclear war should be deployed against Android and Fandroids. They should be mocked, ridiculed and their pathetic OS should be treated like the garbage that it is.



    I agree on the thermo-nuclear war thing.



    Don't normally do this kind of thing, but enough is enough.



    We were recently in the market for a fridge and washing machine. Up until recently we definitely would have purchased Samsung. However, Westinghouse and Bosch got our money purely due to Samsung's recent behavior in the court houses, and with their advertisements.
  • Reply 19 of 131
    gtrgtr Posts: 3,231member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AbsoluteDesignz View Post


    what's a killing app?



    Any app that's installed on a crappy piece of hardware with the following:



    Atrocious customer satisfaction rates

    Battery life issues

    Carrier bloatware

    Ecosystem issues

    Fragmentation

    Hardware failures

    Lag

    Malware

    Memory corruptions

    Memory illegal accesses

    Poor customer service

    Poor monetization for developers

    Resource leaks

    Unavailability of upgrades
  • Reply 20 of 131
    apple ][apple ][ Posts: 9,233member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by GTR View Post


    We were recently in the market for a fridge and washing machine. Up until recently we definitely would have purchased Samsung. However, Westinghouse and Bosch got our money purely due to Samsung's recent behavior in the court houses, and with their advertisements.



    Some people claim that this ad is not about winning over iOS users, but it's still going to backfire on them, as you pointed out, Samsung still sells other kinds of stuff, like appliances, tv's etc.



    Who's going to choose Samsung, when they personally insult potential customers? It's a terrible strategy on their part. Apple doesn't go around making ads and insulting people.
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