30.07.2010 (REUTERS) The European Union’s top court ruled that Anheuser-Busch InBev may not register ‘Budweiser’ as a trademark in the bloc, ending a 14-year legal battle over the name with a Czech brewer.

The long-running dispute has been a David versus Goliath tale of litigation that has run on and off for a century.

‘Budweiser’ means from Budweis, a Czech city now called Ceske Budejovice. Czech brewer Budejovicky Budvar, based in the city, says it is part of a brewing tradition stretching back to the 13th century.

Anheuser-Busch, established by German immigrants in the United States, first began making its ‘Budweiser’ in 1876. It and Bud Light are now the world’s two top-selling beers.

The US brewer, bought for 52 billion dollar by Belgian rival InBev in 2008, sought in 1996 to register the name, but faced opposition from Budejovicky Budvar, which already had protection for its own ‘Budweiser’ beer in Germany and Austria.

The EU body responsible for registering trademarks rejected Anheuser-Busch’s application even though Budvar’s protection of its brand subsequently expired.

The European Union’s second-highest court upheld that finding in March 2009 and the top court, the European Court of Justice, delivered the same verdict.

It ruled that Budvar’s submission of a renewal certificate for its brand was valid even though this came after the period set by the trademark body for submitting evidence.

‘None of the grounds of the appeal being founded, the court dismisses Anheuser-Busch’s appeal in its entirety,’ the court said in a statement.

A spokesman for Budvar, which has registered ‘Budweiser’ in 19 European countries, said the ruling meant that it no longer faced the threat of its rival challenging its trademarks in other countries and a possible wave of law suits.

AB InBev owns the rights to Budweiser or Bud trademarks in 23 of the 27 EU states and has previously said the ruling would have no impact on these. In Germany, AB InBev’s Budweiser is sold as Anheuser-Busch Bud. REUTERS