Buenos Aires, Dec. 11 - An Argentine Court accepted Monday Coca Cola Co's appeal against another court's ruling in August which rejected its complaint against some executives of French food and drink maker Danone, concluding a smear campaign against Coke's Dasani water imposed no damages on its brand, Coca Cola Argentina told Dow Jones Newswires Tuesday.
As a result of the Appeal Court's decision the case will continue its legal course until a final ruling is adopted, Coca Cola Argentina said.
Danone's Argentine unit noted in a statement that the Court of Appeal "ordered the judge to investigate the existence of a disloyal campaign." It also reiterated its "utmost transparency" in its commercial practices, and said that it will continue to cooperate with authorities.
In August, a judge of first instance had acknowledged Coke's claim that Danone and its advertising agency Euro RSCG had orchestrated an Internet smear campaign calling Dasani "bottled tap water" and "cancer water."
Euro RSCG wasn't available for a comment.
However, the same judge rejected the U.S. company's claim that the campaign caused damage to the brand's sales, because when the campaign started Dasani was a new brand and - the judge argued - it didn't yet have any consumers to lose to Danone.
The Appeal Court reversed the August ruling, saying that "it's possible to assume that those responsible of this campaign had forecast that some of the potential buyers of the product (Dasani water), due to the malicious information spread via Internet, would chose similar (water) products, a market's sector dominated by the accused company (Danone)," Coke said quoting the court's ruling.
The case started in July when Coca Cola Argentina filed a complaint against two executives of Danone Argentina's water unit and an executive of Euro RSCG in Buenos Aires seeking damages of as much as $10,000 per individual.
According to Argentine law, companies aren't chargeable for damages, only individuals are.