1/3 Bud War VS Le plus vieux conflit de propriété industrielle encore irrésolu à ce jour The oldest trademark conflict still unresolved update mars-avril 2001 CZ ... USA

"Brewing beer had long been a tradition in Ceske Budejovice when Columbus started his pioneer journey, which can be proven beyond doubt. It seems as though the AB company would be very happy if the town Ceske Budejovice, or "Budweis" in German, along with its 700-year history of brewing beer would simply disappear from the world map. "

D'un côté un breuvage historique, la bierre de Bohême de Ceske Budejovice, petite bourgade de République tchèque. Longtemps sous le joug de la Prusse et des Allemands, la ville s'est plus souvent nommée Budweis. Et cette Budweiser là est fière de rappeler qu'en 1547 le roi Ferdinand-Ier l'accepta dans sa cour, d'où son slogan de 'Beer of kings'. La brasserie 'Budweiser Budvar' d'aujourd'hui n'a été fondée qu'en 1895, même si de la bierre de Budejovice au label 'Budweiser' est déjà exportée aux USA à la fin du 19ème.

De l'autre une bierre légère créée en 1876 - marque déposée - par le groupe aujourd'hui numéro un mondial de la brasserie, Anheuser-Busch, de St Louis, Missouri. Dans les années 1890s la Budweiser US prend l'épitête de "King of Beers". Ces brasseurs d'origine allemande choisissent ce nom tchèque et avouent s'inspirer de recettes de bierres de Bohême.

The founders of Anheuser-Busch, Eberhard Anheuser and Adolphus Busch, were German emigrants who took over a brewery in St Louis, Missouri, in 1864. At first they brewed dark Bavarian-style beers but soon switched to versions of pale Czech Pilsner and Budweiser. Budweiser was launched in 1876 and by the 1890s took on the title of "King of Beers".

Anheuser-Busch makes much of the fact that its Budweiser was brewed almost 20 years before Budvar came into operation. But for centuries Budweiser was an appellation or guarantee of origin in Bohemia and, as shown above, the Burgerbrau company exported under the name of Budweiser for most of the 19th century.

In its early years, Anheuser-Busch even acknowleged the authenticity of Czech beers. In a court case in 1880, Adolphus Busch said: "The process I have described is the process by which beer is made in Budweis to my best knowledge".

In 1898, in another court case, Bush testified as follows:

Question: Is it true that Anheuser-Busch manufactures a certain beer known as Budweiser?

Answer: Yes, sir.

Question: Is that beer made according to a particular process; if so, what process?

Answer: The Budweiser Beer is brewed according to the Budweiser Bohemian process.

Les premières traces de procès datent de 1880, quand AB est accusée de d'abuser du mot 'Original' sur l'étiquette. Ensuite la brasserie Budvar prend le relais, et les procès ne finiront pas avant 1911 et un armistice: les deux marques se partagent le monde (l'Europe aux Tchèques, le reste ou presque aux Américains), mais aucune ne perd son nom commercial:

A short-lived agreement in August 1911 between the two companies stated: "The firm Budejovicky Budvar has not surrendered the right to use the word Budweiser...to denote the geographical origin of its beer products in the trade. The Anheuser-Busch Brewing Association also in the future marks with the words Budweiser its products...except the word 'Original' or similar denotation, being liable to mislead the public in the direction that beers products of Anheuser-Busch are manufacured at Budweis, Bohemia."

That agreement was shattered in 1939.

Il n'y a qu'en Grande Bretagne que les deux bierres peuvent cohabiter sous leur vrai nom. Ailleurs c'est l'un sans l'autre. Exemple: en 1998 la bierre du groupe AB est sponsor de la Coupe du monde de foot en France: elle est obligée de garder son surnom 'Bud' pour faire sa promo. En 2001, Budvar lance une bierre aux Etats-Unis, mais doit changer son logo et surtout le nom du produit, pour 'Czechvar.'

En mars 2001 une revue spécialisée estimait à 40 le nombre de procès en cours entre les deux compagnies.

Budweiser Budvar has registered nearly 380 trade marks in more than 101 countries. It is currently involved in close to 40 disputes in courts and more than 40 sets of administrative proceedings before patents offices with Anheuser-Busch. Budweiser Bduvar is exported to more than 60 countries in four continents, making it one of the most successful representatives of the Czech Republic abroad.

In recent years, Budvar has regained markets for the beer in France, Switzerland, Belgium, Israel, Russia, the Baltic region, Georgia, Romania, Croatia and Slovenia. It is now on sale in such new markets as Ireland, Finland, Denmark, Hong Kong and Japan.

For some years, Budweiser Budvar has been available in "extra territorials" in the United States, such as embassies or UN bodies. When a bottle of Budvar was alleged to have appeared at a private social function in Maryland, Anheuser-Busch filed a complaint with the International Trade Commission. An out-of-court settlement was reached, with both parties agreeing that Budvar could continue to import to "extra territorials" in the US under the Budweiser label.

"Czech beer David challenges American Goliath", par Roger Protz, Good Beer Guide, 28 Mar 2001. www.realbeer.com

+ 1/3 Bud War: histoire d'une querelle centenaire

+ 2/3 1992: tentative d'OPA d'Anheuser-Bush sur Budvar, reportage d'avril 1992 (photos)

+ 3/3 Face à face: l'histoire vue par Budvar, et le discours officiel de Anheuser-Busch (anglais). "Wedding or Annexion", un article d'une révue économique tchèque de 1997, quelque années après la proposition d'Anheuser-Busch de racheter Budvar.

+ Pour vous tenir au courant des derniers procès: essayer cette recherche sur le site Realbeer.com, très efficace (query=trademark+battle).

lambda
(c) 2001-02