Law, Business, and Society 9th Edition by Tony McAdams

Exercise 35

A 1995 Pepsico promotion offered merchandise in exchange for points earned by buying Pepsi Cola. The television ad showed a teenager modeling some of the available merchandise. A Pepsi T-shirt was displayed for 75 points and a leather jacket for 1450 points. At the end of the ad, a U.S. Marine Corps Harrier "jump jet" landed outside a school, and the boy said, "Sure beats the bus." The ad said the jet was redeemable for 7 million points. John D.R. Leonard, at the time a 21-year-old business student in Seattle, Washington, joined five investors in writing a check to Pepsi for $700,008.50 and demanded the 7 million Pepsi points. Pepsi returned the check and said it had no intention of giving Leonard the $24 million jet. Leonard sued. Who wins Explain.
Source: John D.R. Leonard v. Pepsico, 210 F.3d 88 (2d Cir. Ct. App. 2000). [For a video of the ad, see http://www.stcl.edu/faculty-dir/ricks/casebook/pepsi1.wmv. Other ver-sions of the ad can be found at pepsi2 and pepsi3. ]