• PepsiCo is launching what it is calling a "fast beverage" virtual restaurant called Pep's Place that will position Pepsi's beverage products as food accompaniments …. but starting with the beverage.
According to the announcement, Pep's Place "turns the traditional ordering process on its head. Consumers are invited to first pick their Pepsi beverage of choice, which then prompts curated food items based on that beverage, to enhance the overall meal experience. Pep's Place opens today in select locations around the country for delivery only available through PepsPlaceRestaurant.com and major food aggregators (Uber Eats, Door Dash and Grub Hub)."
In other words, you order a Diet Pepsi, and then the website tells you what available entrees from local restaurant partners goes with it.
The Pep's Place test has an initial 30-day time frame.
• Bloomberg reports that Amazon "will take over 'Thursday Night Football' from Fox Corp. a year earlier than originally planned, getting a jump on efforts to lure streaming viewers with the most popular spectator sport in the U.S.
"The NFL said Monday it’s exercising an option to begin the transfer from Fox, so the 2021 season will be the last for that network’s Thursday night telecasts. The tech giant is paying on average about $1.2 billion a year over the 11-year life of its deal," giving it exclusive rights to the Thursday night package.
“This expedited deal is an immediate differentiator for us as a service, as it gives Prime members exclusive access to the most popular sport in the United States,” said Marie Donoghue, vice president of Global Sports Video at Amazon.
