"There was a time when Apple advertised itself as a challenge to the mainstream," says Slate. Now "companies are using [that same strategy] against Apple." Take the newly revealed teaser for Samsung's Galaxy S III smartphone, for instance. Glittery shots of stars and far-off galaxies accompany floating text that makes ambitious promises about the handset's "truly smart technology." (Watch the video below.) The ad — which comes just a week before Samsung's secretive May 3 event where the phone will reportedly be unveiled — concludes with something that seems like it was plucked right from Apple's playbook: A shot of a flock of bleating sheep, overlayed with text promising that Galaxy S III owners will "now stand out from everyone else." In other words, take that, Apple. Is the borrowed strategy working for Samsung?
People will watch the ad, but it's still awful: "The best way to get someone to spread your dumb video is to include something controversial," says Matt Burns at TechCrunch. That's "Viral YouTube Marketing 101." But calling iPhone users sheep? Not really funny, and it's disappointing that the "lame jab is the high point of an otherwise humdrum" ad. "This might be the worst teaser in the history of teasers."
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