Beer Wars: Battle Of The Buds, The UK Front
By: Ainsley Brown
Which Budweiser will you have? Will it be from the US based Anheuser-Busch InBev or will it be one from from its smaller Czech Republic rival Budvar?
Well, if you live in the UK you can enjoy both. In a ruling late last year in the long protracted global trademark war, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled that both companies may continue to use the name Budweiser to sell their products in the UK. The Court has in essence preserved the status quo and acknowledged the commercial reality; that both brands have co-existed on UK shelves for decades. In the ECJ’s estimation there was little or no risk of brand confusion amongst UK consumers.
So what is this trademark battle all about?
The long and short of it is that this latest ruling is just the latest chapter in a multi-volume epic battle. It is a story about a 100 year war, a cross border beer war, over a name. Yes, that’s what I said a name.
From a business perspective it’s all about fiercely defending the brand and marketing of beer and beer related products under that brand. From a legal perspective it is a global trademark war. As for the beer lover – who cares as long as I can have get a great tasting beer at a good price.
For further insight into this trademark war check out my previous post on the matter
