Samsung's "LED TV"

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), a self-regulatory group for advertisers in the UK, has condemned Samsung's ads referring to its "LED TV". The ASA received some complaints about the ads. The complaints assert that Samsung's so called "LED TVs" are actually LED edge lit backlit TVs.

The complaints also contend that the technology is not an entirely new class of television, but another form of LCD TVs that use LEDs for backlighting or edge lighting instead of CCFLs. The ASA agreed. Samsung on the other hand argues that the TV's are revolution in their energy efficiency and that they produce "sharper images, deeper blacks and brighter colours,"

The ASA has upheld the complaints of the TV and magazine ads that Samsung put out. The ASA says that in the UK, Samsung should no longer refer to its TV's as "LED TVs", unless they are comprised entirely of LEDs. However, the ASA standards carry no codified legal authority for the industry.

A spokesperson for Samsung in the UK stated that the ruling allows for the company to continue using the term "LED TV" as long as it is accompanied by an explanation that it is an LCD screen that uses LED technology for backlighting.

Samsung's NEW LED TVs have been unexpectedly been extensively promoted free of charge in the news and media through ASA as a result of complaint!