Innovation (as in Beer!) – The Punch Top Can and Lawsuits to Come

Yes! You can now shotgun a beer with less trouble and mess than before. I saw an ad for the new Punch Top can by Miller Light and couldn’t believe it. The claim is that the new hole is for a “smoother pour.” (see the ad below). Come on. This innovation is about shotgunnig beer. This post captures the snark

Now, it’s only been two years since the brand unveiled the “Vortex Bottle,” a seemingly useless and unnecessary bottle design feature that has somehow lasted 23 months longer than anyone expected. Undoubtedly, the success of the swirly bottle neck has influenced the powers that be at Miller Lite to carry over their brand of “science” to cans. I can only imagine what the supporting market research looks like: “In our study, seven out of 10 brospondants said that when they shotgun cans of cheap beer to the amusement and horror of their friends, they opt for Miller Lite. Of those that answered positively, four out of five said that they have been wounded by the jagged aluminum the occurs in the wake of puncturing the can with their car keys, which reportedly ‘hurts like a bitch.'”

Lawsuits ahead? Sure why not? 1. Campus and underage drinking events mean someone will get alcohol poisoning or get hurt after drinking from these cans. Of course as the industry says Drink Responsibly (and in the ad, “Great Beer, Great Responsibility (with a TM it seems, so don’t go talking about great responsibility even if you are Spiderman’s uncle or maybe Marvel will sue. Hey I found another lawsuit!); but they offered the tool, so go get ’em. Oh and other shot gun tools are available just search for beer shotgun under images in Google for an example. 2. How about a patent suit? Maybe. It seems Coors tried this innovation path a couple years ago. OK not really. It was a joke as far as I can tell. But one comment said no one would do it. And now the joke is real.

Innovation, as in beer!