Budweiser - Dispute Over Right To Use The Name

Dispute Over Right To Use The Name

Anheuser-Busch cites prior registration of the trademark in the US and battles for the right to use it worldwide in many legal disputes against the Europe-based companies in several countries. The Europeans wish to maintain or regain their right to market their beer under their traditional trademark. Bürgerbräu has marketed its beer as Budweiser Bier since 1876, while Budvar has marketed its product this way since 1895. The two companies in České Budějovice point out that Budweiser is not a generic name, but refers to a beer actually made in the city.

The existence of several beers with similar names has caused problems in some markets. In 1907 the US and Czech brewers made an agreement that Anheuser-Busch could market its beer as Budweiser only in North America, while the Czech brewers had the rights to the European markets. Anheuser-Busch markets its product as "Bud" (in France and elsewhere) and "Anheuser-Busch B" (in Germany, Austria and Switzerland), where the beer brewed in the original city retains the rights to the name. The United Kingdom and Ireland are some of the few places where both Anheuser-Busch and Budvar beer are sold under the name "Budweiser".

In 2007 Anheuser-Busch signed a deal with Budějovický Budvar, the maker of the Czech Republic's Budweiser, to import Budvar Budweiser into the United States and sell it under the name Czechvar.

In 2009 the European Court of First Instance upheld a ruling that refuses AB InBev, owners of the US Budweiser brand, permission to register the Budweiser brand as a community trademark. After the ruling, AB InBev decided to keep the Budweiser or Bud name in 23 of 27 European countries. In the U.K., courts have ruled that neither company has exclusive rights to the name Budweiser. In Germany, Budvar has exclusive control over the Budweiser brand name since May 2009. According to the verdict of Court of Justice of the European Union in July 2010, Budweiser Budvar has exclusive control over the Budweiser brand name in the whole European Union.

According to the UK Budweiser Budvar website, "Currently there are about 40 trademark dispute cases pending in different jurisdictions and some 70 procedural issues up for consideration around the world".

From the 2011–12 season, Budweiser (Anheuser-Busch) sponsored FA Cup. Therefore, the tournament title will be The FA Cup with Budweiser until 2014.

• Budweiser Budvar in Europe, brewed in České Budějovice, Czech Republic

• American Budweiser, marked "Lone star state Texas"

• Anheuser-Busch Budweiser alongside Budweiser Budvar