ESSO AND KELLOGG IN CAT FIGHT
By Adnews Staff
Kellogg Canada of Toronto is suing Imperial Oil for its using the Esso Tiger in gas station advertising. Kellogg is seeking $25 million in damages and $1 million in punitive damages. The cereal maker contends the Esso Tiger looks too much like the Frosted Flakes spokescat Tony the Tiger. The cereal maker says its big cat, which has been a public figure since 1952, has become strongly identified with Kellogg products in Canada. Imperial replies that its tiger, created in 1964, is one of the most famous international corporate symbols in the world. It was initially used in TV advertising from 1965 to 1969, and has been used in print advertising, product brochures and as a corporate identifier ever since. Imperial told the court that the two corporate cats have coexisted in 18 countries without any problems. Currently Kellogg is running an interactive television commercial in England featuring Tony the Tiger giving surfing lessons. The 90-second spot for Frosties, as Frosted Flakes are called in Britain, is running on the cable system in London, England owned by Montreal-based Groupe Vidéotron. It can be seen by 100,000 Videotron subscribers equipped to use the cable company's Videoway technology. Viewers push buttons on their home controls to choose elements such as the type of wave and direction of the surfboard.