Samsung Releases 17,000 Units of Galaxy S21: The Reason Behind It [Cha Min-young's PostIT]

English Athlete's 'Samsung Goody Bag' TikTok Video Goes Viral
Olympic and Paralympic Athletes Receive Smartphone Gifts

Special Edition Produced Since 1988 Seoul Olympics
Gifts Given to Athletes Since Sochi Olympics
Samsung Showcase Established Starting This Year with 'Team Galaxy'

A TikTok video posted by Bradley Forbes-Cryans, a member of the British canoe slalom national team. It featured the 'Samsung Olympic Goody Bag' gifted to the athletes by Samsung Electronics. Photo by Bradley Forbes-Cryans (TikTok capture)

[Asia Economy Reporter Cha Min-young] #. Four days ago, a TikTok video posted by Bradley Forbes-Cryans, a member of the British canoe slalom team, went viral. The video, accompanied by a short caption saying "What's inside the Samsung Olympic goody bag?" attracted explosive interest from global media and sports fans worldwide. Why did Samsung Electronics gift over 17,000 athletes with the latest smartphones and other goods?

The Samsung Olympic goody bag is a special gift prepared by Samsung Electronics, the official sponsor of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, for Olympic and Paralympic athletes. It appears to include the latest Samsung smartphone, the "Galaxy S21 Tokyo Olympic Edition," wireless earbuds called "Galaxy Buds Pro," an earphone case, a pen, and more. If the Tokyo Olympics had not been postponed last year due to COVID-19, the previous model, the "Galaxy S20 Olympic Edition," was planned to be produced. As of the date of the video, it had received about 426,000 likes and over 3,400 comments.

Earlier, Kim Yeon-kyung, a member of the women's volleyball national team who departed ahead, was spotted wearing Samsung Electronics' next-generation smartwatch, the "Galaxy Watch4." This is presumed to be the Galaxy Watch4, which will be unveiled at the upcoming "second half Galaxy Unpacked (new product launch)" next month. It is the first product to feature Google's wearable unified OS instead of Samsung's proprietary OS, Tizen. Since Kim Yeon-kyung is a "Team Galaxy" athlete created to promote the Galaxy brand, this is interpreted as a form of leak marketing to increase market interest.

Samsung also set up "Samsung Showcase" spaces across Japan. They established "Galaxy Harajuku" in the bustling Harajuku area of Tokyo, created a Galaxy athlete lounge inside the Olympic stadium, and set up experience zones in the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Village. They expanded through digital and social platforms to promote Team Galaxy-related content and provide virtual experiences for fans worldwide.

The Olympic special edition is a sports marketing tradition that Samsung has maintained for 32 years. Samsung Electronics first introduced the Olympic edition for the 1988 Seoul Olympics. Since the 2014 Sochi Olympics, they have provided products to participating athletes, and from the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics, the target was expanded to include Paralympic athletes. At the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics, about 4,000 units of the "Galaxy Note8 Olympic Edition" were provided.

The reason Samsung invests heavily in sports marketing is due to its clear promotional effect. Since the Olympics is an event that draws global attention, it is an ideal opportunity to showcase the company's latest mobile technologies, including 5G. Dudu Mokololo, Samsung Africa's Chief Marketing Officer (CMO), said, "Despite last year's difficulties, the Olympic spirit remains strong," adding, "Samsung has supported the Olympics and Paralympics for over 30 years and will continue to connect fans with the games." Although the enthusiasm for the Tokyo Olympics was somewhat lacking amid COVID-19 and initial controversies, Samsung's marketing experiments are expected to continue.