In the appeal of a damages suit filed by consumers who said Samsung Electronics installed the game optimization service (GOS) on its Galaxy S22 smartphone series without properly informing buyers, the court issued a compulsory mediation decision, both sides accepted it, and the case was closed.
According to legal sources on the 19th, the Civil Division 12-1 of the Seoul High Court (Presiding Judge Jang Seok-jo, high court judge) issued a compulsory mediation decision on Apr. 12 in the appeal of a damages suit filed by 1,882 consumers against Samsung Electronics. Afterward, because neither side filed an objection within the statutory period, the decision was finalized on the 18th. It came four years after the suit was filed in March 2022. Under the compulsory mediation decision, Samsung Electronics is to pay a set amount to the plaintiffs.
Compulsory mediation is a procedure in civil litigation in which, when the parties fail to reach a settlement, the court ex officio presents a mediation proposal, and if the parties do not object within two weeks, it takes effect as a judicial settlement.
The suit stemmed from Samsung Electronics making GOS mandatory—unlike prior models—when it released the Galaxy S22 series in 2022. GOS is software that, when running functions requiring high-performance computation such as games, adjusts graphics processing unit performance and lowers screen resolution to reduce the device's processing load and heat. Consumers said they were harmed because Samsung Electronics did not sufficiently notify them that this feature could limit performance, and in March that year they filed suit seeking 300,000 won per person in damages.
The court of first instance recognized that Samsung Electronics engaged in deceptive labeling and advertising likely to mislead consumers, but it did not recognize liability for damages. The plaintiffs appealed.
At the first hearing last December, the appellate panel recommended mediation to both sides. Three mediation sessions were held through last month but failed to produce an agreement, and the panel ultimately issued a compulsory mediation decision ex officio. Samsung Electronics did not object in order to end the prolonged dispute, and the mediation was finalized as is.
The case proceeded as a joint lawsuit filed by numerous consumers. Such cases are often colloquially called "class actions" for convenience, but under current law there is no separate class action system for general civil matters. It proceeded under the Civil Procedure Act as a joint lawsuit in which multiple plaintiffs file together.