Dunkin' Donuts jumps on yet another Starbucks bandwagon with ready-to-drink coffee

Starbucks (SBUX) may dominate the ready-to-drink coffee scene, but there's another chain hoping to caffeinate consumers on the go.

Dunkin' Brands (DNKN) revealed on Thursday that it's partnering with Coca-Cola (KO) to launch a line of cold coffee beverages in the U.S. in 2017. Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

This is the coffee chain's first foray into the $1.5 billion ready-to-drink coffee category, a space predominately ruled by the North American Coffee Partnership — a venture between Starbucks and PepsiCo (PEP).

The Starbucks-Pepsi partnership, which was founded in 1994, has allowed the two companies to gain 80 percent share in the market by volume and 89 percent share by dollars, according to Beverage Digest.

Dunkin' has long followed in the footsteps of Starbucks in terms of product launches. The coffee chain added pumpkin spice lattes to its menus as well as cold-brewed coffee, among other Starbucks-inspired offerings in recent years.

"This new product introduction will increase consumption of Dunkin' Donuts coffee and increase our brand relevance with existing and new consumers, including many younger customers, which we believe will in turn, drive incremental visits to our restaurants," Nigel Travis, CEO and chairman of Dunkin' Brands said in a statement.

Dunkin's bottled iced coffees will be distributed by Coke in grocery stores, convenience stores and in Dunkin' Donuts restaurants.

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