Coca Cola TV spot banned by ASA over 139 calories claim
Coca Cola has seen a UK campaign canned after the Advertising Standards Authority ruled that it misled viewers into believing that the 139 calories in a can of Coke could be burned off in conjunction with a range of individual activities.
In fact you would have to do ALL the activities listed to burn off all 139 calories, not just one.
The question was whether or not Coca-Cola made that clear to viewers. The ASA decided that it didn't.
The offending spot, by Publicis, has also been shown in other countries, including the US (seen here, which uses 140 calories, instead of 139).
The British video opens on a can of Coke. Next to it is the "equal" sign and the words "139 Happy Calories" .
The 30 second ad stated ‘139 happy calories’…‘to spend on extra happy activities’ and featured a range of pursuits and on screen text describing various activities; such as walking, dancing and bowling.
Concluding text then reads ‘But if today you don’t feel like doing it…have a Coke with Zero calories.’
Ten viewers took issue with the 139 calorie claim, asserting that the individual stated activities were insufficient to negate the effect of drinking the regular product.
Upholding this view the ASA said: “We considered that the images of the activities featured were the main focus of the ad and noted that the on-screen text listing each activity changed with each scene, but that the "+" remained constant.
“We therefore considered that the plus sign was not as prominent as the on-screen text describing the activities and further considered that some viewers might infer that the plus sign was purely decorative. In light of that ambiguity, we considered that it would not be clear to some viewers that it was the combination of all the activities depicted which would burn off 139 calories.”
Coke told the ASA that by using the universally recognized "+" and "=" symbols, the spot clearly communicated that it was necessary to perform ALL the activities in order to negate the 139 calories.
The ad must not be broadcast again in its current form.