BURGER KING BREAKS SECOND ROUND OF TOY RECALL ADVERTISING
By Adnews Staff
Burger King Corporation of Miami, Florida will launch a second round of advertising recalling its Pokemon toy balls after a second death in two months. Reports from Canadian Press and Reuters said the restaurant chain will run 15-second television advertisements beginning tomorrow for one week warning parents about the toys. The recall is for the halved plastic balls that contained a Pokemon toy included in Burger King's kids meal as part of a promotion. The spots will run for one week on major networks and more than 20 cable outlets. Burger King announced its first recall on December 27 by placing a print ad in USA Today, posting signs in its restaurants and launching a direct mail campaign to 56,000 pediatricians, 10,000 emergency room directors and 25,000 emergency health care clinics. It also put the recall announcement on tray liners, carryout bags, its Web site and sites frequented by Pokemon fans. More than 25 million toys were handed out with Burger King children's meals as part of the promotion late last year. Officials at Burger King could not confirm before press time if the second round of advertising would be launched in Canada as well. The new 15-second televisions spots were created by Lowe Lintas of New York.