AB-InBev told to stop selling low-alcohol beer in Belgian suit
When the going gets tough ... the tough take each other to the court. In early July 2012, the Brussels commercial court ruled that AB-InBev must stop selling its low-alcohol beer Jupiler Blue because its blue-and-white label is too similar to Maes Pils, a beer brewed by Heineken’s Belgian subsidiary Alken-Maes. Alken-Maes insisted that the use of blue bottles and cans would confuse the consumer; its blue label was registered in 2006.
Belgian media reported that the ruling will come into effect within a month and will only affect sales in Belgium. Still, should there be any blue cans and bottles of Jupiler Blue around after that, the brewer will have to pay a fine – EUR 50 per bottle or can according to the magazine Trends.
Several Belgian media jeered that the court’s decision is bad news for AB-InBev that now faces the cost of taking its product off supermarket shelves. All investments in promoting the new brand have been wasted and new packaging will have to be launched.
AB-InBev announced it will appeal the ruling. “We believe it isn’t possible to monopolize the colour blue in general for beer packaging, notably because several beer brands use blue as the dominant colour on their labels”, a spokesperson for AB-InBev was quoted as saying.
Belgians drink an average of 78 litres of beer per year. Over the past 20 years, beer consumption in Belgium has declined by over 20 litres per capita, which has lead to fierce competition between AB-InBev, the market leader with a 56 percent share, and Heineken’s Alken-Maes, ranked second, with perhaps 12 percent. It’s only thanks to rising beer exports that many of the country’s smaller brewers have managed to survive.
