Diet Coke
Diet Coke (called Coca-Cola Light in some countries) is a sugar-free and no-calorie soft drink produced and distributed by The Coca-Cola Company. It contains artificial sweeteners instead of sugar. Unveiled on July 8, 1982 and introduced in the United States on August 9, it was the first new brand since 1886 to use the Coca-Cola trademark. The product quickly overtook the company's existing diet cola, Tab, in sales.
New Coke
The 20 bottlers still suing Coca-Cola made much of the change in their legal arguments. Coca-Cola had argued in its defense when the suit was originally filed that the formula's uniqueness and difference from Diet Coke justified different pricing policies from the latter – but if the new formula was simply an HFCS-sweetened Diet Coke, Coca-Cola could not argue the formula was unique. Bottlers, particularly in the South, were also tired of facing personal opprobrium over the change. Many reported that some acquaintances and even friends and relatives had ostracized them, or had expressed displeasure in other emotionally hurtful ways. On June 23, several of the bottlers took these complaints to Coca-Cola executives in a private meeting. With the company now fearing boycotts not only from its consumers but its bottlers, talks about reintroducing the old formula moved from "if" to "when".