Budweiser vs Budvar Negotiations Hit New Snag
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MyBeer Buzz
The battle for exclusive use of the Budweiser name worldwide has hit a new snag this week. Details from Boston.com:
A deal, it seems, will have to wait a bit longer because settlement talks between state-owned Budejovicky Budvar and Anheuser-Busch, a U.S. company now part of AB InBev, have collapsed, according to Budvar’s director general, Jiri Bocek.
The dispute is over exclusive rights — when only one of the companies is allowed to use the Budweiser name in any given country. As a larger company, AB InBev is particularly keen to expand its exports and market its beers under the Budweiser brand. But Budvar says that giving up its exclusive rights to the name would threaten to wipe out its own brand from the market.
Budvar recently rejected a proposal for a global settlement by AB InBev, which in turn refused a counteroffer. Bocek said negotiations on these proposals, details of which he could not provide, were over.
‘‘Their goal is to gain exclusivity for their Budweiser all around the world,’’ said Bocek, who as head of Budvar for the past 21 years has raised the heat on the larger rival.
Co-existence is possible, however. In fact, the two companies already share the Budweiser name in one country, Britain.
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