Obama overreacts to selfie brouhaha

What if David Ortiz had used an iPhone for a selfie with President Barack Obama?

Would the White House consider legal action against Apple?

These are questions asked by some Koreans after the U.S. presidential office showed displeasure after the photo the Boston Red Sox star took of himself and the President on a Galaxy Note3 went viral.

Obama’s aides may be playing to the domestic political gallery.

After all, he is a politician and needs to look patriotic.

Apple is losing luster in its home turf by market share and the American company is now involved in patent dispute with Samsung Electronics.

In August last year, Obama vetoed an import ban Samsung won from the United States International Trade Commission (USITC) to prevent some Apple devices from being sold in the United States, marking the first time since 1987 that a president has interfered with a USITC order.

Even U.S. legal experts then said the direct intervention was aimed at protecting American companies too much, raising concerns that Washington may shift toward stiffer protectionism.

Samsung is significantly helping boost regional economies especially in Texas by increasing investment in chip facilities and hiring more. It is the biggest foreign investor in the U.S.

“That selfie certainly wasn’t part of the jersey deal. It was spontaneous on his part, as Ortiz just wanted to keep the moment with the President as such a chance is rare,” said an industry source.

“I don’t think the uneasiness was caused by the Samsung name. If Apple did the same, what would be the response from the White House?” he added.

“Probably, messages by top Samsung management have been delivered to senior White House officials suggesting that the selfie wasn’t organized in advance and was just spontaneous,” said another source. By Kim Yoo-chul The korea times