Very good point regarding the retailers, wonder what steps Pepsi is taking to address their concerns.

First, retailers may well reduce merchandising support for Pepsi leading up the Super Bowl, since the brand is no longer advertising on the game. This could help Coke substantially.

Second, Pepsi’s absence could make consumers wonder “What happened to Pepsi?” Coke will be very visible this year and I think Pepsi’s absence will be notable.

I would be surprised indeed if people said “I’ll drink more Pepsi because that brand isn’t advertising on the Super Bowl.”

The folks at Pepsi clearly believe they have something better to spend on, and that may well be the case. It will be interesting to see how it plays out.

“I think there could be a bit of backlash.” I was wondering if you could expand on that. Personally I already see it as a win for Pepsi. It’s already generating mentions this far out from the games and to me, largely positive coverage. I could see Pepsi’s shift reducing brand awareness, but backlash? Not sure how that would come about. According to your article above, they were already getting negative feedback with their commercial spot failures.