McDonal’s
· 1996
·
February 16th 10am, the McSpotlight website was launched.
·
In March, the public's intense concern over the links between the cattle
disease BSE and its human equivalent CJD forced McDonald's UK to ban British
beef. The company did not sell any beef products for a week while supposedly
waiting for beef supplies to arrive from other EU countries.
·
The "Vegetable Deluxe" was launched in the UK.
·
McDonald's opened stores in India.
·
McDonald's and Disney announced a deal giving McDonald's exclusive
rights to use characters from Disney films in its promotions around the world
for 10 years. Commentators called it the biggest global marketing alliance yet
devised.
·
McDonald's opened a store in Belarus, its 100th country.
·
The movie star Robin Williams turned down a million-pound offer to
advertise McDonald's.
·
McDonald's threatened the owner of a UK sandwich bar called
"McMunchies" with legal action for breach of trademark. A retired
Scottish school-teacher called Ronald McDonald, and the chief of the McDonald
clan in Scotland were both outraged at this further attempt by McDonald's to
claim global dominion over the prefix "Mc" and the name
"McDonald" which has been an Irish and Scottish family name for
centuries.
·
The Supreme Court of Denmark ruled against McDonald's claim that a
sausage stand called "McAllan's" was in breach of its trademark.
·
Following widespread opposition by local residents in Winchmore Hill
(north London) which put a lot of pressure on the local MP (Michael Portillo,
the Defence Secretary), McDonald's were refused permission to convert the local
Conservative Association HQ into a Drive-Thru.
·
McDonald's sued for breach of trademark a Jamaican fast-food company
(called the McDonald's Corporation Limited) which had been operating in Jamaica
since the early 1970's. The Jamaican company succeeded in getting information
from the McLibel Trial taken from the Internet ruled admissible in the case,
and in getting an order barring McDonald's from opening stores in the country
until the courtcase was completed.
·
McDonald's succeeded in its trademark battle in South Africa, when an
appeal court prohibited competitors from using its name and the golden arches
symbol.
·
McDonald's began spending $200 million on a promotional blitz in the USA
& Canada to lure adults to visit their outlets. This included the launch of
the new adult burger, the "Arch Deluxe" in May. Despite this blitz,
US sales continued to fall.
·
The parents of a child, who died from E.Coli 0157 food poisoning after
eating McDonald's burgers in Spain and England, began legal proceedings for
compensation in the USA. Meanwhile, three children who suffered E.Coli 0157
food poisoning in England also from McDonald's burgers were granted legal aid
to sue McDonald's and their supplier McKey's.
·
McDonald's opened the world's first fast-food ski-through in the
Lindvallen resort (Sweden).
· The
McLibel Trial became the longest trial of any kind in English legal history in
November. The evidence was completed in July, and the closing speeches in
December, but the Judge reserved his Judgment until the following year.