Samsung is estimated to spend a staggering $US14 billion on advertising and marketing this year, directing a greater share of its revenue to promotion than any major company.

Citing Thomson Reuters data, Reuters reports Samsung spends 5.4 per cent of its sales on advertising, putting it at the top of the world’s top 20 companies. By way of comparison, major rival Apple spends 0.6 per cent of revenue on marketing while car maker General Motors spends 3.5 per cent, Reuters reports.

Last year alone Samsung spent $4.3 billion on advertising.

The deluge of money is designed to convince the public that Samsung is no longer just a producer of household electronics but an innovator and an aspirational brand – crucial for a sector beset by commoditisation and rapidly falling price points.

Claims of overexposure

But some are questioning whether the money is being wisely spent, with suggestions that some advertising campaigns and blatant product placements in shows such as The X Factor TV series in Britain and The Shoot short film competition final at Sydney Opera House might be doing the brand more harm than good.

Despite outspending its rival Apple by more than tenfold, at $US39.6 billion, Samsung’s brand value is still less than half of global No. 1 Apple’s $US98.3 billion, according to Interbrand’s Best Global Brands valuations published by Ad Age in September.