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Czech Brewer To Launch Appeal Over "BUD" Trademark Ruling

By square1
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Czech Brewer To Launch Appeal Over "BUD" Trademark Ruling

Czech brewing company Budejovicky Budvar are reportedly considering whether to launch an appeal to the Supreme Court in France after the Appellate Court ruled that the "BUD" trademark is invalid in the country.

The decision upholds a ruling from the European Union's general court earlier this year, which rejected Budvar's appeal over its right to use the term 'BUD' in four European countries, including France. 

In a statement released by Anheuser-Busch InBev, the company with which Budejovicky Budvar has been locked in a long-standing legal battle with over the "BUD" trademark, the French appeal court ruled in AB InBev's favour “because the European Commission did not protect the term following accession of the Czech Republic to the European Union in 2004”.

The company also said that the decision "solidifies Anheuser-Busch InBev’s trademark position in France.”

A-B InBev NV was formally granted the European Union-wide trademark right for the word “Bud” for beer in June of this year after an EU agency registered the intellectual property right.

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"The court's verdict has not taken effect yet. We are now analysing our chances of success in a possible appeal to the Supreme Court with our lawyers," spokesperson for Budejovicky Budvar, Peter Samec told Czech media last week.

AB InBev, the world’s biggest brewer, and Czech rival Budvar have been entangled in disputes over the use of the Bud brand for more than a century, as each brewer won and lost the rights in different rulings. Anheuser-Busch, founded by German-born American Adolphus Busch, said it started using the Budweiser name in 1876, 19 years before Budvar was formed.

© 2013 - European Supermarket Magazine by Enda Dowling

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