137:. The plan was to test MagiCans before distribution by shaking them to detect faulty mechanisms. Coca-Cola's own initial estimate was that 120,000 MagiCans were on store shelves or in bottler inventories at the initial release, of which less than 1 percent, or fewer than 1,200 cans, were faulty. Ultimately, Coke ended the campaign after only three weeks due to the negative publicity regarding faulty cans. This negative publicity included an
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to find out if they had won. Pepsi's promotion also suffered from negative publicity when it was discovered that if two specific Cool Cans were stacked in a certain way, the designs appeared to spell out the word SEX. Coca-Cola would attempt a similar promotion three years later with "Monsters of the
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existing cans would be purchased and off the shelves. At the time of termination, 200,000 of the 750,000 planned promotional cans had been distributed. Although largely confident there were no safety issues, Coca-Cola's final advertising spot showed New Kids on the Block with an added voiceover from
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The decision to end the campaign came one week after the "Take A Good Look" advertisements were released. Coca-Cola then released ads telling consumers that only a few prize cans were left on the market and that they would be "going, going, gone by mid-June", the time when the company estimated the
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lawsuits, Coke immediately placed television and newspaper advertisements in 50 large United States markets. The full-page ads, run only once, warned consumers that a "very small number" of cans contain a foul-smelling but harmless water that should not be ingested. The ads were headlined "Take A
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A number of cans had problems: the pop-up mechanism malfunctioned, jamming, or a faulty seal released some of the chlorinated water mixture into the can itself. A widely reported incident involved an 11-year-old boy in
Massachusetts drinking the foul-tasting liquid used to replace actual cola.
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to pop out of the opening once the can was opened. The prize would either be money, from $ 1 to $ 500, or coupons redeemable for trips or merchandise. The total giveaway of cash and prize coupons was $ 4 million. The original plan was to randomly distribute about 750,000 MagiCans among the 200
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promotion. Instead of a complicated push-up device in cans, each can was filled with normal, drinkable cola and at the bottom of the inside of the can there was a number printed that could correspond with a prize, from $ 25 to $ 20,000. The consumer called a
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showing a man in sunglasses opening a soda can while standing near a billboard hyping MagiCans, then removing his sunglasses in surprise when a small sign emerges from his can reading "Buy Pepsi". The ads also drew fire from a 1990 issue of
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Good Look" and in smaller type, read "You could have a MagiCan." The print ads pointed out that the MagiCans might be defective, which actually proved a key point in any potential plaintiff's lawsuit under the doctrine of
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complaint was that the ads deceptively showed people opening cans that turned out to be MagiCans every time, making the contest look easier to win than it actually was (the magazine also made the same complaint about
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Coca-Cola first announced the "Magic Summer '90" campaign in March 1990 by sending MagiCans containing money to journalists. Some journalists wrote that it was questionable for a big corporation to
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Gridiron", a
Halloween-themed promotion where people could call a toll-free number and enter a code, to which a recording from an NFL star would tell them whether or not they won a prize.
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in circulation at any one time. To make the cans feel and weigh normal, and prevent people from easily finding the prize cans, a sealed area within the cans was filled with a mixture of
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water and a foul-smelling substance to discourage drinking. Though initially a great success—that led to a rise in sales—technical difficulties led to the promotion's early termination.
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determined that the water was not harmful, containing a lower concentration of chlorine than the water in a typical swimming pool. Worried about the bad publicity and potential
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in the United States of
America as a part of their $ 100-million "Magic Summer '90" promotion. The MagiCan promotion began on May 7, 1990, and ended on May 31.
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in the 1990s and 2000s that a child had died drinking the liquid in one of the MagiCans. This has been reported as false according to
122:"We are winding down early. There is the impression we don't like among our consumers that there is a problem with the promotion."
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When Coca-Cola began receiving complaints about the faulty cans, it temporarily halted distribution of the MagiCans to local
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and distributing "MagiCups", which were paper cups with peel-off prizes on the exterior used for fountain drinks at
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magazine, in their annual "ZAP Awards" segments detailing the worst ads of 1990.
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warning, "If you have a winning can, don't drink the liquid!"
426:, Associated Press, May 24, 1990, accessed April 16, 2013.
293:, Associated Press, May 31, 1990, accessed April 16, 2013.
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Coke Ending "MagiCan" Promotion
Because of Bad Publicity
358:, snopes.com, July 30, 2006, accessed April 18, 2013.
438:, Snopes.com, July 30, 2006, accessed July 13, 2014.
23:A spring-loaded tab dispensed real U.S. money or a
424:Duds Prompt Coke to Shore Up MagiCan Promotion
389:Zillions, September 1990, "ZAP Awards", pg. 22
57:inside instead of Coca-Cola. The prizes were
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178:also did a prize giveaway in 1990 under the
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368:An example of the full-page advertisement
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275:, June 15, 1992, accessed April 16, 2013.
127:— Coca-Cola spokesperson Randy Donaldson
105:Massachusetts Department of Public Health
323:, May 24, 1990, accessed April 16, 2013.
238:featured a similar promotion with their
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98:Technical issues and early termination
42:were special, mechanical cans used by
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455:May 1990 events in the United States
195:was reminiscent of the fiasco over
94:chains and other fountain outlets.
470:Promotional campaigns by Coca-Cola
16:Promotional Coca-Cola cans in 1990
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333:Coke Cans A Snakebitten Promotion
317:Problems Pop Up in Coke Promotion
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376:, May 23, 1990, page A7, via
103:Despite initial fears, the
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400:"'SEX' in Pepsi Cool Cans"
373:Greensboro News and Record
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193:damage-control initiative
53:cans had cash prizes or
49:In this promotion, some
199:several years earlier.
267:The Other Summer Games
80:mail cash to reporters
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84:New Kids on The Block
44:The Coca-Cola Company
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460:1990 introductions
321:The New York Times
191:Coca-Cola's quick
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465:Liquid containers
315:Anthony Ramirez,
174:Meanwhile, rival
139:editorial cartoon
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109:product liability
88:Magic Summer Tour
64:Coca-Cola Classic
55:gift certificates
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422:Marc Rice,
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161:Burger King
68:chlorinated
33:merchandise
449:Categories
409:2021-07-23
404:Snopes.com
246:References
213:Snopes.com
370:, in the
240:Prize Can
225:Cola wars
180:Cool Cans
156:Zillions'
92:fast-food
51:Coca-Cola
344:Newsweek
336:Archived
272:New York
219:See also
197:New Coke
145:Zillions
135:bottlers
40:MagiCans
236:OK Soda
74:History
176:Pepsi
29:trips
86:'s
31:or
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