Can Samsung Defeat Apple's iPhone with Tonight's Event?

In less than 12 hours Samsung will introduce the most anticipated Android phone of the year -- the Galaxy S IV. As the follow-up to the only Android phone that sold 30 million units in 2012, the Galaxy S IV is expected to carry the Samsung legacy across another slate of milestones this year. Thus far, the media and consumer anticipation has been insurmountable. While pre-release rumors, over-inflated promises and ridiculous amounts of media hype are typically reserved for an Apple AAPL product, the Galaxy S series is becoming a new powerhouse in technology. It's enough to make you wonder if the "S" stands for "Stalwart." Banking on the success of similar campaigns by Apple, Sony SNE and other tech giants, Samsung has refrained from commenting on the Galaxy S IV. Instead of revealing a plethora of official details, the South Korean manufacturer has only released a teaser image showing the top left side of the device. The image was published on Twitter this week and has already been re-tweeted 1,779 times -- a respectable (though not groundbreaking) amount for the device's first official tease. This teaser is not much different from the invites that Apple sends to the press, which often show an iconic symbol or a portion of an upcoming device to hint at what will be revealed. Unlike Samsung, Apple does not turn to social media to build hype for upcoming products. In fact, the company does not even have an official Twitter page for the company -- but it has one for the App Store (with 1.5 million followers), iTunes (3.7 million followers) and other divisions. The @Apple Twitter account has nearly 15,000 followers but is likely a fake. There are no official mentions of Apple on the page, and the owner has not published a single tweet. The official Samsung Twitter page, @SamsungMobileUS, has 4.2 million followers. This is considerably higher than @Nokia, which has 400,000 followers. It is also much higher than LGUSAMobile (24,000 followers), @HTC (488,000 followers) and @Motorola (142,000 followers). Samsung is getting a fair amount of attention for its promoted trend, #TheNextBigThing. Most of the tweets have nothing to do with the company's products, however. "#TheNextBigThing Is my gut if I don't hit the cardio," @Rharvley tweeted last week. When @WrestleEnigma sees the Samsung hashtag, he thinks of wrestling. "You know your a wrestling fan when you see #TheNextBigThing trending and you immediately think in Paul Heyman's voice, 'BROCK LESNAR!!'" ‏he tweeted. Those who do speak about the Galaxy S IV are not necessarily tweeting positive remarks. "If you really build #TheNextBigThing, it would probably trend on Twitter organically without paying for a promoted trend," ‏@RyanNewYork tweeted. In an attempt to cash in on the hype for the Galaxy S IV, LG has purchased ad space just above a Samsung ad in Times Square. The original Samsung ad tells consumers to "Be Ready 4 The Next Galaxy." LG's ad touts the Optimus G (which is already available) with a different message: "LG Optimus G is here 4 you now!" Follow me @LouisBedigianBZ