Budweiser v Budweiser in Europe
by Tamera H. BennettUPDATE July 24, 2008 -- Read the article Trademark Dispute Hovers Over Anheuser, InBev Deal at www.law360.com. Tamera Bennett was interviewed regarding the ongoing trademark dispute.
Tamera H. Bennett, founder of the Bennett Law Office PC, a boutique copyright, trademark and entertainment law firm, was less optimistic. “Obviously, I don't know what their internal strategies are going to be, but in the end I would say it's not going to change a lot,” Bennett said. She added that each company will continue to expand into new territories and that each new territory will bring a new conflict. “We won't be here in 100 years, but our grandchildren will be having the same conversation because those brands will still be here,” Bennett said.
Original Post July 16, 2008 It has been big news that Anheuser-Busch was bought out by InBev. What many may not realize is that a "Bud" in Czech is not the same as a "Bud" in the US.
With InBev's purchase they also acquired approximately 100 legal disputes, mostly over versions of the Budweiser trademark, in more than 30 jurisdictions around the globe. The opposing party to these suits is Czech state-owned brewery Budejovicky Budvar, which has Bud and Budweiser brand trademarks and variations registered in 28 European and 37 non-European countries.
Budvar was founded in 1895 in the Czech city Ceske Budejovice–called Budweis. Anheuser’s German founders began brewing their Budweiser in America in 1876, adopting the Budweiser name as beer from the same Czech city.
In the end ... "This Bud's For You."
