This is what Nothing has to say on ‘#DearNothing controversy’ – Times of India

#DearNothing hashtag went viral on social media platforms soon after the launch of Nothing’s first-ever smartphone, Nothing Phone 1. . The #hashtag expressed outrage and anger towards the brand for apparently not sending review units to YouTube. It started after the popular YouTube Channel ‘Prasadtechintelugu’ released a video that claimed he received an empty box from Nothing with a letter inside that read: “Hi Prasad, this device is not for South Indian people. Thank you.” Most people could not understand the video and took the letter as real. Social media platforms were inundated with posts slamming Nothing with a screengrab of the ‘fake letter’. Nothing has finally responded to the controversy. Manu Sharma, vice president and general manager, Nothing India, shared the company’s response on Twitter. Here’s the letter shared by Sharma.

We are overwhelmed by the love and response we have gotten so far. Phone (1) is our first smartphone. We are constantly learning and unlearning as we go along in this journey.
We believe in having transparent and respectful dialogues; be it with our community, consumers, partners or media friends. In the light of the recent events, we want to set the record straight
* For us, content is bucketed across all media verticals like print, online, blogs, broadcast, (not Just) Youtube to name a few, pan India.
* For Nothing Phone (1) we had a plan of sending devices which was supposed to be rolled out in a phased manner.
* As part of the roll out, many content creators including regional language Journalists have received the units.
This is not just because we are a new brand but this is standard across the industry. The content creators in question were always part of the roll out plan post launch.
However, at this point this is not about the review units. This is regarding the ‘fake letter’ that was pulled out of a ‘fake’ Nothing box without any disclaimer. This has been misunderstood by many as an official communication from us.
As a new brand, our journey will be full of bouquets and brickbats. We know that. But misrepresentation and misleading claims is absolutely not acceptable.
This is just the beginning of our journey and we cannot wait to see Phone (1) in the hands of our entire Indian community in the weeks and months to come.