Feathers are flying as South African cellphone giant MTN and the fast-food chain Nando’s clash over a multimillion-rand advertising campaign.<\/p>\n
Do the phrases “Y’ello Summer” and “Yello’ Hummer” sound remarkably similar?<\/p>\n
Of course they do, and the similarity has sparked an angry submission by MTN to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) to get Nando’s to stop running its copycat advertising. <\/p>\n
On Friday Nando’s received the complaint, lodged with the ASA, in regard to its competition in which the prize is a “Yello’ Hummer”, in an obvious spoof of MTN’s Y’ello Summer advertising.<\/p>\n
MTN claims its total advertising spend on its Y’ello branding and Y’ello Summer campaign since 2003 has been R433-million, R105-million of which was spent this year. <\/p>\n
The R433-million to build the brand has been “negated” by Nando’s recent promotion, it claimed.<\/p>\n
It all started when Nando’s was given a yellow Hummer for a promotion it planned, and the colour gave it the idea to parody MTN ads.<\/p>\n
The ads, which use the MTN yellow and use words like “top up”, are clearly meant to resemble MTN ads.<\/p>\n
The Nando’s campaign could also be seen to have a strong resemblance to the successful “Cell C Hummer Hummer” campaign, but it appears that MTN’s cellphone rival Cell C has not complained.<\/p>\n
This is not the first time that Nando’s, which cultivates a jokey image, has done something of this sort.<\/p>\n
As Nando’s marketing director Paul Appleton said: “We have even parodied ourselves in the Wando’s ads.” Other well- known parodies included ads that mimicked Verimark ads. Appleton said Nando’s had even parodied Madiba.<\/p>\n
The MTN-like ads appear at all Nando’s outlets nationally, as well as on radio.<\/p>\n
In a lengthy submission to the ASA, MTN said the Yello’ Hummer promotion is running at the same time — November to January — as the Y’ello Summer campaign traditionally runs.<\/p>\n
It objects to the use of the colour yellow, the word Yello’, the use of “everywhere you go”, “top up” and “real deal”, as well as a similar jingle to its own, among other things.<\/p>\n
Its complaint relates to exploitation of advertising goodwill and imitation.<\/p>\n
According to MTN, it sent a letter of demand on November 27 and got a response from Nando’s attorneys and that Nando’s “refused to give the undertakings requested in the letter of demand”.<\/p>\n
MTN had tried to resolve the issue amicably, but failed, although Appleton said Nando’s had offered to meet MTN. <\/p>\n
One of Nando’s defences is that the ad is intended to amuse and is permissible in terms of the ASA code as parody.<\/p>\n
But MTN said in its submission, “On the contrary, Nando’s is not in the business of amusing people. It is a commercial fast- food retail outlet.”<\/p>\n
In fact, according to MTN, the promotion is simply not funny. “Furthermore, parody cannot be relied on as a defence in circumstances where the Nando’s promotion is devoid of humour. No clever wit, amusing punchline or anecdote can be found in the Nando’s promotion,” it said.<\/p>\n
MTN claims the promotion will result in a loss of potential advertising value and “dilute the distinctiveness of MTN’s advertising”.<\/p>\n
Appleton said Nando’s advertising has always pushed boundaries but stayed within rules.<\/p>\n
He said Nando’s could not resist offering a yellow Hummer as a prize in its summer campaign. “The concept was briefed into the agency and it was irresistible!” The ad “pokes affectionate fun at the battle for ownership of summer”, he said.<\/p>\n
He said Nando’s pioneered tactical advertising and “has placed its brand signature on parodies. Consumers understand parody, and we believe that they respect brands that get the humour too.<\/p>\n
“The nature of Nando’s campaigns has always been to amuse, and although its advertisements often contains parodies [of other advertisers], it is not Nando’s intention to disparage any competitor or advertiser.”<\/p>\n