2. Discuss the following. Who are the main competitors in the market in the following sectors?

Sportswear, fashion, cars, telecommunications, computers, soft drinks.

3. Speaking. The global market is very competitive. What can companies do to persuade customers to buy their product instead of another similar one? You can use the following prompts.

To increase sales, to enter new markets, to maintain customer loyalty, to sponsor sport events, to update the product (service), to attract new customers, to send your employees on training courses.

4. Reading. Before you read the article make predictions. Match the sentence openings 1-4, with the endings a-d. Then scan the text and see if you are correct.

1. In the USA…	a. Pepsi has a market share of 33%.
2. Outside the USA…	b. Coca-Cola outsells Pepsi by 13:1.
3. In Eastern Germany….	c. there is a 41% to 32% ratio in Coca-Cola’s favor.
4. In Mexico….	d. Coca-Cola outsells Pepsi by 3:1.

Mind some new words.

trademark	торговая марка
to outsell	продавать больше, чем конкурент
race	гонка
ratio	соотношение
in one’s favor	в чью-либо пользу
operating profit	операционная прибыль, прибыль от основной деятельности
overseas	заграницей
beverage	напиток
take	деньги, заработанные за определенный период времени (зд.)
soft (-) drink	безалкогольный напиток
Coca-Cola vs. Pepsi	Кока-Кола против Пепси
World War II	Вторая Мировая война
military	армия, военные силы
troops	войска
to get a break	получить счастливый шанс (зд.)
to hand	вручать
to click	щелкать затвором (о камере)
entree	право вступить, войти
franchise	разрешение продавать продукт
collapse of the Berlin Wall	падение Берлинской Стены
to overcome one’s edge	отвоевать чье-либо преимущество
to claim the lead	заявлять о лидирующем положении
former	бывший
to retain the lead	поддерживать лидирующее положение
to double plant capacity	удвоить производительность заводов
booming	процветающий, испытывающий подъем
giant	гигант

Coca-Cola vs. Pepsi

Coca-Cola has operated outside the U.S. since 1897. It has become the world’s best-known trademark. More than any other product – even Levi’s or McDonald’s Big Mac – it is an American emblem. According to Harvard Business School study, it is the second best-known word in the world – after OK.

Today Coca-Cola outsells Pepsi around 3 to 1 outside the U.S. The domestic race is closer, with a 41%-32% ratio in Coca-Cola’s favor. While Pepsi’s parent company makes most of its profit from its snack-food and restaurant operations, Coca-Cola gains 80% of its operating profit from its overseas beverage business. Last year’s take in the international soft-drinks race was $2.5 billion for Coke, vs. $112 million for Pepsi.

Coca-Cola can thank government for its success abroad. During World War II, the U.S. military built more than 60 Coke bottling plants outside the U.S. to supply the American troops.

Pepsi got its international marketing break in 1959 when then chairman Donald Kendall handed Soviet President Nikita Krushchev a bottle as cameras clicked: that gave the company an entrée into Eastern Europe. In 1972 Leonid Brezhnev gave Pepsi exclusive franchise in the Soviet Union.

Since the collapse of the Berlin Wall in 1989, Coca-Cola has moved swiftly to overcome Pepsi’s edge in Eastern Europe. Coke claims the lead in Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, Romania, Czech Republic. Pepsi is fighting especially hard in Russia and in the former Soviet Union Republics where it claims to retain the lead. Coke, however, now outsells Pepsi by more than 13 to 1 in Eastern Germany.

Pepsi reports its market share in Mexico has jumped from 28% to 33% during the past two years. With its $750 million investment Pepsi has doubled its plant capacity.

The Coke-Pepsi battle is still continuing. Both companies are going to make their products more available. They are also going to lower prices. That means more consumers buying more soft drinks. The average American consumes 720L of soft drinks a year – more soft drinks in fact than water. Non-Americans have a long way to go before they reach that level – and that would translate into booming business for the two giants.