MasterCard Sues, Says Nader Copied Its Commercial

MasterCard International Ltd. on Wednesday filed a $5-million lawsuit against Ralph Nader, accusing the Green Party presidential candidate of ripping off a well-known MasterCard ad campaign in a political TV spot.

MasterCard filed suit in federal court in Manhattan, seeking an order barring Nader from running the ad, after a week of fruitless conversations with his campaign, said Chris O’Neill, a marketing vice president for the company.

MasterCard’s ads features sentimental episodes of family outings, assigning monetary values to various activities before coming up with an activity that is “priceless.” The ads conclude: “There are some things in life money can’t buy. For everything else, there’s MasterCard.”

The Nader ad adopts a nearly identical format to focus attention on the role of political contributions in this year’s presidential campaign.

The ad opens with video clips of Texas Gov. George W. Bush and Vice President Al Gore, as an announcer intones, “Grilled tenderloin for fund-raiser: $1,000 a plate. Campaign ads filled with half-truths: $10 million. Promises to special interest groups: over $10 billion.”

“Finding out the truth: Priceless,” the announcer concludes. “There are some things money can’t buy. Without Ralph Nader in the presidential debates, the truth will come in last.”

When the Nader campaign unveiled the ad earlier this month, it described the spot as “reminiscent” of the current MasterCard ad campaign.

But a spokeswoman for the Nader campaign said Wednesday that despite MasterCard’s complaints, the 30-second ad was still airing in Los Angeles and that it has proven a valuable tool in awakening voters.