Beer, Branding and Human rights

The ongoing dispute over the Budweiser trademark is the first trademark case brought into the European Court of Human Rights. Bloomberg reports: Anheuser-Busch Takes `Budweiser’ Dispute to Human Rights Court: “Anheuser-Busch is appealing a 2001 decision by Portugal’s Supreme Court, which ruled that Budejovicky Budvar NP has the right to use the Budweiser name under a 1986 treaty between the Czech Republic and Portugal. Anheuser on Jan. 11 asked the human rights tribunal to rule on the case, arguing the Portuguese court infringed its “peaceful enjoyment” of the trademark.
Brand Channel looks at the relationship between Beer Brands and Homelands: “”When it comes to identifying with a country, after flags, national anthems and national airlines comes beer,” says Martin Lindstrom, a brand strategist from Denmark, the home of Carlsberg. “The advantages are very clear. It is what you would call free branding—leveraging a country’s brand rather than building your own.”
(via IPKat and The Trademark Blog)