Taiwanese fair trade officials are investigating claims Samsung has been hiring students to post negative comments about rival phone manufacturer HTC online.
PC Advisor reported documents published in a local newspaper appearing to prove Samsung had been paying people to criticise HTC and praise its own products.
Taiwan’s Fair Trade Commission has begun an investigation following complaints, according to the AFP news agency. Samsung said the “unfortunate incident” demonstrated by the documents was against the company’s “fundamental principles”.
If found guilty of “false advertising”, Samsung could face a fine of up to T$25m s (US$837,000).
