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Copper Top boosts power
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February 18, 1998: 7:16 p.m. ET
Duracell unveils more powerful battery, stepping up war with rival Eveready
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - More over Energizer Bunny, there's a new battery in town.
Duracell Wednesday unveiled a new alkaline battery that the company claims lasts 50 percent longer than the current technology allows.
The new "copper top" battery, known as the Duracell Ultra, will cost 20 percent more than the AA- and AAA-sized batteries Duracell now sells. It's launch is bound to charge up the company's media-crazed war with rival Eveready.
The world's leading producer of batteries for electronic devices, Duracell claims about half of the U.S. battery market. Eveready, a unit of Ralston Purina, is not far behind at number two.
In an interview with CNNfn's Stuart Varney, Edward Degraan, Duracell's president, said the alkaline battery offers greater efficiency for high-end electronic devices like digital cameras and palmtop computers. (WAV 395KB) (AIFF 395KB)
The Ultra will hit store shelves in May.
For its part, Eveready brushed off Duracell's announcement and insisted it had improved its comparable batteries several times in 1997. Eveready makes the Energizer battery, whose ads feature a mechanized pink bunny that has become something of a pop icon in the U.S.
"It's not our policy to boast about product news before it's ready," said Keith Schopp, a spokesman for Ralston Purina.
"We've tested what we believe is their latest product," Schopp said. "Energizer's AA and AAA batteries are still 44 percent superior to the new Duracell in high-rate applications."
Duracell will reportedly launch a $60-million advertising campaign to promote the Ultra line.
The company has long relied on the "copper top" theme, which in recent years has featured a mechanized toy family's hi-jinks and the downside to wimpy batteries.
Admitting the strength of the Energizer bunny, Degraan says while the marketing campaign is an important part of the business, it's quality of product that wins over customers most of all.
"I look at [the ads] and say, 'it's a wonderful ad campaign,' but in the United States over the recent years, we have gained market share," Degraan said.
"We believe that at the end of the day, the win is going to be achieved by the company that puts more innovation and more technology on the table," he added.
Duracell is angling to tap the market for cellular phone batteries at a time when demand for them is soaring.
"We have recognized that the segment is growing very, very rapidly -- it has become a larger part of the total battery business," said Degraan. Duracell said the overall market for alkaline batteries grew by 60 percent between 1987 and 1995.
The Ultra doesn't fit in a cell phone, but Duracell will sell separately, for about $15 to $20, a special cartridge that snaps on to the back of the phone.
Degraan also justified the planned higher prices, citing "extensive" market research that showed consumers will pay for longer-lasting batteries.
"Most consumers have said, 'if you can deliver a product that can perform in those devices we are really concerned about, those devices we pay several hundred dollars for, then we're willing to go up around 20 percent,'" he said.
Duracell is a Bethel, Conn.-based subsidiary of consumer products maker Gillette Co., which bought the company in 1996. Gillette shares (G) gained 1 7/16 to 103 ½ in midday trading Wednesday. 
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Duracell
Eveready
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