Miller shows its grit in beer war

The two biggest US beer brands are squaring up against each other with summer advertising blitzes.

After Anheuser-Busch unveiled its new "Lizards" Budweiser ads earlier in the month, Scottish Courage (ScotCo) has kicked off a new campaign for Miller Genuine Draft (MGD).

ScotCo's intention to give MGD a more gritty, urban American feel than Bud's all-American positioning is reflected in the new ad, which features a young man bouncing on his bed while attempting to swat a wasp.

The rhythmic squeaking of his bedsprings makes waves throughout his apartment block, with fellow tenants giving him the raised eyebrow look when he meets them later for a beer.

While Bud remains the best-selling premium packaged lager in the UK, MGD is catching up with year-on-year growth of 8.8 per cent and is especially strong in Scotland.

The new ads are part of a £9million spend on promotional support for MGD and sister brand Miller Pilsner this year.

Anheuser-Busch is spending £30million this year to maintain its position at the head of the field.

The Lizards ad, which is also running on ITV, Channel 4, Channel 5 and satellite, follows on from the Frogs advertising campaign that has already achieved great popularity.

The ads feature lizards Frank and Louie, the latter prone to regularly sounding off about the way the frogs are hogging all the publicity.

The popularity of the Frogs campaign has been matched by the success of the soundtrack Ooh La La, by the Wise Guys, which entered the UK charts at No 2.