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PepsiCo Says It’s Not Buying SodaStream

Denies reports they’re in talks to buy the Israeli company for $2 billion

by
Stephanie Butnick
June 06, 2013
Sodastream products are displayed at the ribbon cutting at the American Pavilion during the 66th Annual Cannes Film Festival on May 17, 2013 in Cannes, France.(Danny E. Martindale/Getty Images)
Sodastream products are displayed at the ribbon cutting at the American Pavilion during the 66th Annual Cannes Film Festival on May 17, 2013 in Cannes, France.(Danny E. Martindale/Getty Images)

PepsiCo says they’re not buying SodaStream, despite reports in an Israeli financial newspaper that they were involved in talks to buy the Israeli company for $2 billon. According to Reuters, the Calcalist reported that the American beverage giant made a $2 billion offer to buy the DIY carbonated beverage company:

A PepsiCo spokesman told Reuters on Thursday that “the rumor is untrue” and reiterated the company’s position that it sees no need for large acquisitions.

According to Bloomberg Business Week, though, PepsiCo might want to reconsider the offer, given SodaStream’s success:

And even if SodaStream hasn’t siphoned off much of the soft-drink market, business is flowing for the Israel-based company. SodaStream has averaged a 33 percent annual revenue gain in the past five years and posted a profit in each of those periods. At a meeting with investors last month, the company said 6.5 million households around the world actively use its machines and set a target for $1 billion in revenue in 2016.

In the meantime, here’s SodaStream’s super snarky Super Bowl commercial, rejected by CBS, which takes both on Coke and Pepsi.

Stephanie Butnick is chief strategy officer of Tablet Magazine, co-founder of Tablet Studios, and a host of the Unorthodox podcast.