Pepsi drops Super Bowl ads in favor of cause marketing

After 23 years of advertising during the Super Bowl, PepsiCo is pulling its beverage ads in favor of an upcoming cause marketing program, The Wall Street Journal reported. Meanwhile, Coca-Cola is continuing with its plans to advertise during the Super Bowl, with a spot rumored to be featuring the Simpsons.

Pepsi's new cause marketing program will let consumers choose community programs to receive grant money from the beverage company, which has set aside $20 million of its ad dollars for the program. It will also focus more on PR and online advertising. The Journal reports:

"In 2010, each of our beverage brands has a strategy and marketing platform that will be less about a singular event," says Frank Cooper, senior vice president of PepsiCo Americas Beverages.

Pepsi's new tack is "not a condemnation of the Super Bowl," says its Mr. Cooper. It would be too hard to explain Pepsi's new marketing campaign in a 30-second TV spot, he adds.