Kronenbourg Spotify song complaint upheld

A complaint about a Kronenbourg 1664 promotion on Spotify has been upheld by the Independent Complaints Panel for featuring a music track which references drinking to excess.

The Kronenbourg 1664 promotion was developed by marketing agency BBH on behalf of Heineken UK, brand owner of Kronenbourg 1664.

The campaign featured banner adverts on Spotify to direct consumers to the Kronenbourg 1664 “slowed down” playlist as part of its “Slow the Pace” marketing campaign, which centres on the idea of linking relaxed consumption with music that had been slowed down from the original track.

Previous songs used in the TV campaign have included “Baggy Trousers” by Madness and “The Ace of Spaces” by Motorhead.

The complaint was made about one of the tracks in the Spotify playlist, a cover of the Dead Kennedys’ “Too Drunk to F**k” by Nouvelle Vague.
The Panel acknowledged that, while the company had not deliberately set out to promote irresponsible drinking, the track name and lyrics referenced drinking to excess thereby associating the brand with immoderate consumption.

This was a breach of the industry Code rule 3.2 (f) which bans alcohol promotion from encouraging irresponsible or immoderate drinking.
David Poley, chief executive of the Portman Group, said: “We were pleased that the company took immediate action to remove the track from the playlist as soon as the complaint was brought to its attention.

“Heineken has also introduced more rigorous approval procedures as a result. This demonstrates just how careful companies have to be when marketing alcohol and we encourage people to get in touch with the Portman Group prior to campaign launch for advice on the Code rules.”