ATLANTA -- The Coca-Cola Co. and a subsidiary of its chief rival, PepsiCo Inc., have reached a settlement in a lawsuit over an advertising campaign for Coca-Cola's Powerade Option sports drink, the Associated Press said.
Coca-Cola agreed to stop airing one Powerade Option TV commercial and modify the language of another relating to the carbohydrate calorie content and relative energy benefits of Powerade Option and Gatorade, which is produced by Stokely-Van Camp, part of PepsiCo's Quaker Foods.
The lawsuit filed Monday in U.S. [image-nocss] District Court in Chicago said the ad campaign featuring a drag race between farmers in Amish dress riding horse-drawn carts was false and deceptive. It claimed the ad implied that Powerade Option's fewer calories literally make you go faster.
Powerade Option has 10 calories per 8-oz. serving compared with Gatorade's 50 calories. But it also does not have the carbohydrate content of Gatorade, the leading sports drink.
The suit sought a permanent injunction to bar Coca-Cola from running the ads, which were launched last week during the start of the NCAA men's basketball tournament. Coca-Cola said that under the settlement, the drag race ad would stop, but Powerade Option advertising would continue to run during the tournament.
PepsiCo noted that the settlement called for another ad, called Laces, to be modified.
Coca-Cola spokesperson Dan Schafer said the modification was a voiceover that would make clear that Powerade Option has both fewer calories and less carbohydrate energy than Gatorade. The voiceover also would accompany another ad that was not part of the lawsuit, Schafer said.
Gloria Garrett, a Coca-Cola North America vice president, said that as the No. 2 player, we want to set ourselves apart from the category, but we want to compete in the marketplace, not the courtroom. Our advertising will maintain the central theme of the campaign, which is that Powerade Option has fewer calories than Gatorade.
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