Samsung's rival, HTC, has hired actor Robert Downey Jr. for a two-year global marketing campaign worth $12 million, reports Bloomberg.
Bloomberg says Downey will be featured in the new campaign as himself and not as the characters he plays in movies like Iron Man and Sherlock Holmes.
HTC has been struggling recently to gain smartphone users despite releasing its well-reviewed flagship phone, the One, this spring. It recently lost a handful of top executives too.
Last quarter, HTC posted its slimmest profit on record and its sales are down 68%. Sales aren't the only problem HTC is facing. It is also fighting an uphill battle on the marketing front because Samsung spends nearly 10 times as much.
This news come right on the heels of Samsung's announcement that it has a $5 million deal with rapper Jay-Z. Samsung will sponsor Jay-Z's newest album, "Magna Carta Holy Grail" by giving away 1 million free copies to its smartphone users.