Anheuser-Busch Loses Legal Battle
EU court rules AB InBev cannot trademark "Budweiser"
By Canadian Packaging Staff | July 30, 2010
The European Union's top court has ruled that Anheuser-Busch InBev (AB-InBev) can not register the 'Budweiser' name as a trademark finally enging a long 14-year battle with the small Czech Republic brewer Budejovicky Budvar.
'Budweiser' translates in Czech to Budweis, a Czech Republic city now known as Ceske Budejovice. The Budvar brewery has always claimed the name as part of its brewing tradition going back to the 13th century, while Anheuser-Busch, established by German immigrants in the U.S. began making its 'Budweiser' brand in 1876.
When Anheuser Busch (purchased by Belgian giant InBev for US$52 billion in 2008) tried to trademark the name in 1996, it discovered that the small brewer Budejovicky Budvar already possessed the brand name protection for its own Budweiser beer in Germany and Austria.
Despite Budvar's brand protection had expired during the on-going legal battle, the EU body responsible for registering trademarks rejected Anheuser-Busch's application.
The EU's second-highest court upheld that finding in March 2009 and the top court, the European Court of Justice, delivered the same verdict on July 29, 2010.
In the ruling, the court determined that Budvar's recent submission of a renewal certificate for its brand was valid even though this came after the period set by the trademark body for submitting evidence and dismissed Anheuser-Busch's appeal. .
AB InBev, which owns the rights to Budweiser and Bud Light--the two best-selling beers in the world--in 23 countries states that the decision will have no affect on its business.
