Anheuser-Busch Buys "Budweiser" Marks from Czech Brewer

Anheuser-Busch InBev NV, owner of the U.S. "Budweiser" mark for beer, has recorded a small success in its longstanding efforts to establish worldwide exclusive rights to the Budweiser mark by purchasing the rights to Budweiser trademarks held by a small Czech brewery, Budejovicky Mestansky Pivovar.

However, this is a victory in a small skirmish in InBev's much larger trademark war with another Czech brewer, state-owned Budejovicky Budvar NP. InBev (through Anheuser-Busch) and Budvar have been engaged in multiple disputes related to the Budweiser mark for many years. In one of the most recent decisions, the European Court of Justice ruled in 2011 that InBev and Budvar could both continue to sell beer in the UK under the Budweiser mark, because they had both been doing so for at least 30 years. "Although the names are identical, UK consumers are well aware of the difference between the beers of Budvar and those of Anheuser-Busch, since their