Samsung Challenges 20 Billion Won GOS Fine

Samsung Electronics has announced plans to take legal action against a 20.0 billion won surcharge imposed by the Fair Trade Commission on the Game Optimizing Service, or GOS, featured on its Galaxy smartphones. The decision came despite all domestic and overseas litigation having concluded and a complaint having been withdrawn. GOS is a feature designed to manage device heat by adjusting performance when games are running, a practice common in the global smartphone industry.

The company's legal representatives argue that overseas competition authorities have not sanctioned such functions nor deemed them false or exaggerated advertising. The dispute stems from Samsung's decision to make GOS mandatory on the Galaxy S21, S22, and S8 series released from January 2021 to March 2022, leading to controversy over performance limitations.

Although Samsung lifted the speed restriction through a software update in March 2022, consumers filed damages suits, claiming they were harmed due to the company advertising the devices as top performers. The legal dispute has since been settled in eight related lawsuits across three countries, with the Fair Trade Commission's complaint withdrawn.

The case has now entered a second round through administrative litigation as Samsung strongly objects to the provisional imposition of the surcharge.