Pepsi’s “Blue Storm” Followed by “Red Passion”

The Wall Street Journal (subscription may be required) reported that Pepsi introduced a newly-minted red can in China.

According to the article, Pepsi’s change of color is based on positive customer feedback, and the “bold move” was calculated to ride on Chinese consumers’ patriotism and national pride in anticipation of the 2008 Summer Olympic Games to be hosted in Beijing.

With due respect to Pepsi’s “bold move” and shrewd marketing strategy, I keep wondering if this self-transformation has something to do with a lawsuit that Pepsi lost in China over its use of the “Blue Storm” [“蓝色风暴” ] trademark. In that case, the Zhejiang Province Higher People’s Court held that Pepsi had infringed on the trademark rights of a little known Chinese beverage company by using the pre-registered “Blue Storm” trademark without permission, thus causing reverse confusion. For more on this, please read my prior posts:

Chinese “David” Brought Down American “Goliath” for Trademark Infringement

Pepsi’s Storm in China Rages on