Brand cannibalization is where a company introduces a brand that steals customers away from one of

their other brands. For example, Coke Zero gets a large percentage of its customer base from Diet Coke
drinkers and from Coca Cola drinkers. This means that Coke is eating itself in order to sell Coke Zero.

The theory behind it is that, while the product will incur a substantial amount of cannibalization, it will also
draw in customers from other sources as well in order to, hopefully, increase the total company customer
base (and thus increase revenue).

What is 'Market Cannibalization'

Market cannibalization is the negative impact of a company's new product on the sales
performance of its existing and related products. It refers to a situation where a new product
"eats" up the sales and demand of an existing product, potentially reducing overall sales,
even if sales of the new product are increasing. This can negatively affect both the sales
volume and market share of the existing product.