Lost or discarded fishing nets are threatening our oceans and natural ecosystems. Every year, hundreds of thousands of marine animals, including turtles and dolphins are accidentally caught in these “ghost nets.” These hidden threats are a leading cause of ocean pollution, silently drifting while trapping and injuring marine life. Samsung has committed itself to saving our oceans by discovering a solution that gives discarded fishing nets new life and prevents further preventing them from destroying our ecosystems. As part of the company’s ongoing sustainability vision, Galaxy for the Planet, Samsung is leveraging its scale, innovation, and spirit of collaboration to repurpose ocean-bound discarded fishing nets into sustainable technology. Together, we have a responsibility to reduce plastic pollution, especially in our oceans.

Technological innovation plays a vital role in helping us protect our oceans. That’s why Samsung is committed to raising awareness about the hidden threat of ghost nets. These nets can float in our oceans undetected by sight or sonar damaging coral reefs, injuring marine life like turtles and dolphins, and over time, even ending up in our food and water sources.

As a leading innovator of mobile technology, Samsung harnessed the power of technology to address the hidden threat of ghost nets and deliver real, positive impact for the planet by transforming ghost nets into a high-performance material for mobile technology.

The brand went a step further to ensure consumers understood the risks ghost nets pose to marine environments. To tell its story, Samsung crafted a short video that shed light on the role technology plays in conserving our oceans and encourage more sustainable habits.

Samsung put authenticity and accountability first by developing a documentary-style video that focused on informing audiences rather than promoting its products. It clearly outlined the brand’s intention, process, and how the material would come to life for users.

Samsung first determined the scope and scale of ocean plastic pollution. It discovered that 640,000 tons of fishing nets are abandoned in and around our oceans every year. It also explored the habits and needs of its main audience, M/Z consumers, who experience increased levels of eco-anxiety. Therefore, the approach was grounded in their demands for more positive and accessible ways to be sustainable in their daily lives.

When crafting the film, Samsung wanted to encourage awareness and action among its audiences. The script and visuals were grounded in this concept of simplifying complex solutions to complex challenges like the ocean plastic crisis into smaller, simpler actions that amount to big impact.

Samsung teased its use of recycled ocean-bound plastic by posting an article on its press site, Samsung’s Newsroom (600K MAU) and Samsung Mobile Press (325K MAU). This article shed light on how Samsung innovated product development to reduce ocean-bound plastics with a compelling graphic that displayed fishing nets encompassing a smartphone device. The brand also briefed media on the innovation to transparently share its process and intended impact.

Samsung highlighted the effort on stage at its largest product event, Unpacked, and promoted it to media in the press release for its newest flagship device, the Galaxy S22.

Samsung told a visually story with a documentary-style film to break down its complex solutions into a compelling, easy-to-understand video that educated consumers and other audiences on how this innovation preserves our oceans. The film was posted to Samsung’s social media channels, including Instagram (1.2M followers), Twitter (12.4M), LinkedIn (641K), and YouTube (6M).