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Lone Chick-fil-A Franchise Fights Mickey D’s

A Tulsa, Okla., Chick-fil-A franchisee struck back at McDonald’s in a billboard that took a jab at the burger giant’s new Southern style chicken sandwich.

“Trade in Any 1/2 Eaten Copied Sandwich and Get the Original Meal Free at Chick-fil-A,” the billboard read, writes The New York Times.

The franchisee said about 50 to 60 McDonald’s sandwiches were exchanged for the Chick-fil-A version.

The new McDonald’s chicken sandwich - a breaded chicken slab topped with two pickles - is markedly similar to that of Chick-fil-A’s signature offering. Analysts give positive reviews to the McDonald’s sandwich in taste and sales potential, with one, Jeffrey Omohundro, senior analyst for Wachovia Capital Markets, saying the McDonald’s sandwich may be “the closest offering we have seen to Chick-fil-A’s signature chicken sandwich, which we consider to be a leader.”

Chick-fil-A says it does not have the marketing budget to go up against McDonald’s in a pitched sandwich battle, and is urging its franchisees to not waste time pushing back against the rival effort.

McDonald’s gave away about 5 million of its new chicken sandwiches, and two million biscuits, on May 15, to any customer who purchased a drink. The company had expected to give away about 8 million.