German court rules TCL’s QLED ads misleading, siding with Samsung

(Yonhap)

A German court has ordered Chinese television maker TCL to stop advertising certain models as quantum dot light-emitting diode televisions, ruling that the claims constitute misleading advertising under the country’s unfair competition law.

The decision marks a legal victory for South Korea‘s Samsung Electronics, which filed a lawsuit against TCL’s German subsidiary in April last year.

According to industry sources Thursday, the court ruled that TCL’s marketing of several models, including the QLED 870 series, as QLED televisions constituted unfair commercial practice under the unfair competition law. The court determined that the diffuser in the models, which TCL claimed incorporated quantum dot materials, does not meaningfully improve color reproduction and therefore fails to meet consumer expectations associated with QLED televisions.

QLED televisions use quantum dot technology to precisely control and reproduce colors, improving brightness and picture quality compared with conventional light-emitting diode televisions. The International Electrotechnical Commission defines a QLED television as a structure in which a quantum dot film is inserted between a blue backlight and the display panel to enhance color reproduction.

TCL had argued that trace amounts of quantum dot materials were applied to the diffuser and used this claim to market the products as QLED televisions. The court, however, concluded that the technology does not deliver a meaningful performance improvement.

As a result of the ruling, TCL’s German subsidiary is no longer allowed to advertise or sell the products — or other models using the same technology — as QLED televisions.

The decision is also expected to affect ongoing regulatory and legal actions involving TCL’s QLED advertising.

In South Korea, Hansol Chemical filed a complaint with the Korea Fair Trade Commission in November 2024, alleging violations of the labeling and advertising law. Class-action lawsuits over TCL’s QLED advertising are also underway in the United States, including in New York and California.