Apple Expanding Marketing Efforts with New Ad Agencies to Battle Samsung Threat

Apple is planning to expand and improve marketing efforts by partnering with four new digital ad agencies, including WPP's AKQA, Interpublic Group's Huge, Area 17, and Kettle, reports Ad Age. The agencies will work on digital strategy and user experience, among other things.

The scope of the work being assigned across the agencies is broad, and will likely include user experience and digital strategy, among other elements, according to people familiar with the matter.

According to Ad Age, Apple's new partnerships will not affect existing relationships, such as that with TBWA/Media Arts Lab. Apple's longtime advertising partner was recently in the spotlight after the Apple vs. Samsung trial surfaced a heated email correspondence between the agency and Apple's head of marketing Phil Schiller.

Apple and Schiller were unhappy with the TBWA's early 2013 advertising efforts, but those relationship wrinkles were apparently ironed out as Apple has continued to work with the agency, producing the successful "Photos Every Day" and "Music Every Day" advertisements in late 2013.


Apple also works with several other digital shops and in 2013, the company began working on doubling the size of its in-house creative design team, likely as a response to increased pressure from Samsung. Samsung's "The Next Big Thing" advertising campaign reportedly infuriated Apple executives, leading to its troubles with its own advertising agencies.

According to a recent report, Apple spent $351 million on advertising in the U.S. in 2013, while Samsung spent $363 million. In years past, Samsung has far outspent Apple on advertisements, but that gap appears to have narrowed as Apple has made moves to improve its marketing campaigns.

Popular Stories

AirPods Pro 3 Mock Feature

AirPods Pro 3 Just Months Away – Here's What We Know

Friday April 18, 2025 5:16 am PDT by
Despite being more than two years old, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 still dominate the premium wireless‑earbud space, thanks to a potent mix of top‑tier audio, class‑leading noise cancellation, and Apple's habit of delivering major new features through software updates. With AirPods Pro 3 widely expected to arrive in 2025, prospective buyers now face a familiar dilemma: snap up the proven...
CarPlay Hero

Apple Releases Wireless CarPlay Fix

Wednesday April 16, 2025 11:28 am PDT by
If you have been experiencing issues with wireless CarPlay in your vehicle lately, it was likely due to a software bug that has now been fixed. Apple released iOS 18.4.1 today, and the update's release notes say it "addresses a rare issue that prevents wireless CarPlay connection in certain vehicles." If wireless CarPlay was acting up for you, updating your iPhone to iOS 18.4.1 should...
iphone 16 pro models 1

17 Reasons to Wait for the iPhone 17

Thursday April 17, 2025 4:12 am PDT by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models simultaneously, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 17 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect from Apple's 2025 smartphone lineup. If you skipped the iPhone...
Beyond iPhone 13 Better Triad

Apple's 20th Anniversary iPhone May Finally Go All Screen

Tuesday April 15, 2025 6:31 am PDT by
Apple is preparing a "bold" new iPhone Pro model for the iPhone's 20th anniversary in 2027, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. As part of what's being described as a "major shake-up," Apple is said to be developing a design that makes more extensive use of glass – and this could point directly to the display itself. Here's the case for Apple releasing a truly all-screen iPhone with no...
maxresdefault

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 12 New Features

Sunday April 13, 2025 7:52 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of April 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and ...
iOS 19 Roundup Feature

iOS 19 Will Add These New Features to Your iPhone

Tuesday April 15, 2025 7:37 am PDT by
The first iOS 19 beta is less than two months away, and there are already a handful of new features that are expected with the update. Apple should release the first iOS 19 beta to developers immediately following the WWDC 2025 keynote, which is scheduled for Monday, June 9. Following beta testing, the update should be released to the general public in September. Below, we recap the key...
tvOS 18 Thumb 1

Apple Releases tvOS 18.4.1

Wednesday April 16, 2025 10:04 am PDT by
Apple today released tvOS 18.4.1, a minor update to the tvOS 18 operating system that came out last September. tvOS 18.4.1 comes two weeks after Apple released tvOS 18.4, and it is available for the Apple TV 4K and Apple TV HD models. tvOS 18.4.1 can be downloaded using the Settings app on the ‌Apple TV‌. Open up Settings and go to System > Software Update to get the new software....
iPhone Security Feature 25

Five iPhone Security Features You Should Be Using

Wednesday April 16, 2025 4:15 pm PDT by
Apple has quite a few security features that it's added to iPhones, iPads, and Macs over the years. Now more than ever, it's important to make sure you're taking advantage of the built-in security tools that are available to keep yourself and your data safe, so we've rounded up a list of the most important options. If you don't already have these enabled, you might want to consider turning...
vision air cable

Images of Apple 'Vision Air' Power Cable Emerge Online

Thursday April 17, 2025 5:55 am PDT by
More images of a redesigned power cable allegedly for a future Apple "Vision Air" headset were today shared online by the prototype collector and leaker known as "Kosutami." Yesterday, the leaker explained that the Apple "Vision Air" will feature a thinner design and switch the battery enclosure and several of its internal structures to titanium to reduce the device's overall weight. Most of ...

Top Rated Comments

theheadguy Avatar
144 months ago
Maybe Apple should just start innovating again.
Score: 20 Votes (Like | Disagree)
wikiverse Avatar
144 months ago
Apple needs to stop making ads aimed people who have never owned a smartphone.

Once you've had 4 iPhones, they're not 'magical' or 'inspiring' or 'revolutionary' anymore.

It' just a phone. Everyone has one.
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TheRainKing Avatar
144 months ago
Compare that rubbish ad in the article to some old Apple ads.



Apple use to have so much charisma, but now they just come off as another soulless company.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
IPPlanMan Avatar
144 months ago
How about putting a new product in one of those ads Tim?
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
cowbellallen Avatar
144 months ago
Apple's commercials have somehow morphed into ads about interesting people doing crazy things I'll never do with my iPhone. They also all seem to be focused on the internal camera more than anything. Is the camera really the thing that convinces people to buy an iPhone?

Also, do they not advertise for Mac computers anymore?
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
CrickettGrrrl Avatar
144 months ago
It's not good to look desperate.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)