LG Electronics Inc., which has been lagging behind its peers in the global smartphone market, has teamed up with K-pop phenomenon BTS to market its new flagship smartphone G7 ThinQ.

The South Korean electronics company said Tuesday it launched a billboard advertisement at Times Square in New York featuring the popular boy band. The ad, which started last Sunday and will run for three days, shows the seven members celebrating their five-year anniversary and promoting LG’s latest phone.

BTS, also known as the Bangtan boys, became the first K-pop act to top the Billboard 200 chart with its latest album Love Yourself: Tear, the first foreign-language album to reach No. 1 in more than 12 years.

LG Electronics tapped the group in April to represent the new G7 ThinQ, which hit Canada and the United States on June 1.

With the K-pop superstar as its new model, LG Electronics plans to bolster its marketing activities through social media, a tool that has also helped the boy band build up its massive fan base across the globe. The group seized the Top Social Artist award, given to an artist with the highest fan engagement on social media, at the Billboard Music Awards in 2017 and 2018.

“We believe the worldwide success of BTS would help boost the image of G7 ThinQ in the North American market,” said Kim Soo-young, a senior executive at LG Electronics.

By Chun Gyung-woon and Kim Hyo-jin

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