Dr Pepper Snapple Group (DPS), Plano, Texas, announced a multi-year agreement with MTVN Music Group, a division of Viacom’s MTV Networks, to nationally promote and distribute Sun Drop, a citrus soda that was distributed primarily in the Carolinas and Midwest.

 

MTV Scratch, an in-house creative team, will develop all aspects of brand marketing for Sun Drop, ranging from new packaging graphics to advertising promotions.

 

“Sun Drop has an incredibly passionate fan base, and we believe MTV can help us broaden that connection with millennials who can take it to the next level,” said Jim Trebilcock, executive vice president of marketing for Dr Pepper Snapple Group, in a statement. “MTV knows this generation of consumers better than anyone, and their marketing reach will help drive demand for Sun Drop and expand national distribution.”

 

Sun Drop also will appear within some of MTV’s properties, such as the 25th season of “The Real World,”, and “The mtvU Woodie Awards,” MTV’s college network dedicated to indie music. Additionally, Sun Drop will be featured as part of a multi-city consumer sampling initiative at music festivals and on college campuses across the United States.

 

“DPS and MTV are taking a pioneering approach to bringing consumer insight, creative ideas and execution and powerful platforms together to successfully launch products to the marketplace,” said Sean Moran, executive vice president of advertising sales for MTVN Music Group, in a statement. “With DPS, we’re not only creating an innovative campaign for a great product, but forging new thinking and new business models in an increasingly complex media environment.”

 

DPS will leverage the strength of Sun Drop’s brand equity, its network of bottling partners and its route to market to drive retail distribution with strong trade activation throughout the United States, the company says.

 

Sun Drop will be available at major retailers across the country in 2011.