Anheuser-Busch Trying To Trademark Area Codes For Local Beers

from the drunk-moron-in-a-hurry? dept

Thu, Jul 21st 2011 4:28am — Mike Masnick

Ryan points us to the news that beer giant Anheuser-Busch InBev is apparently in the process of trying to trademark various area codes across the country. A few months back AB bought Goose Island, a craft brewer who made a beer called 312... after the local area code in Chicago. Apparently AB liked the idea so much that it's seeking trademarks elsewhere, which (one assumes) it will try to use to offer local beers. Of course, with an operation like AB, you wonder if it won't just package up the same beer for each location...

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Filed Under: area codes, beers, trademark
Companies: anheuser-busch inbev, goose island

64 Comments

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Chris-Mouse (profile), 21 Jul 2011 @ 4:46am

Didn't Intel discover that you can't trademark a number?
Has the USPTO changed their policy on this in the last decade?
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Nicedoggy, 21 Jul 2011 @ 4:49am

http://freebeer.org/blog/

Thank God for free beer and the open source people :)
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ambiguator, 21 Jul 2011 @ 5:06am

actually...
The beer is called "312 Urban Wheat."

Let's hope they come up with more clever monickers than just the 3 digits of an area code.
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Richard (profile), 21 Jul 2011 @ 5:11am

If this was Europe
Then there would be a requirement that the beer be actually made within the area - AB might not like that....
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Richard (profile), 21 Jul 2011 @ 5:12am

Patent
Also , the 312 people dshould patent the idea of naming a beer after an area code...
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abc gum, 21 Jul 2011 @ 5:13am

A beer by any other name would taste as good
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ComputerAddict (profile), 21 Jul 2011 @ 5:29am

312 Urban Wheat sounds identical to Budweiser: Low alcohol by volume; SRM 20 (aka piss yellow); 2-Row and Torrified wheat, which most homebrewers would just consider a base-malt on which you would build a specialty grain package on top of; and Liberty and Cascade hops (a very mild hop) that probably walked through the beer on stilts.

Congrats AB, you bought your own beer.
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Ima Fish (profile), 21 Jul 2011 @ 5:29am

"you wonder if it won't just package up the same beer for each location"

Well, if the number described the location of its origin... then it would be a merely descriptive mark. Which could not be trademarked. So the only way it'll work is if they do not use it to describe its origin.
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ComputerAddict (profile), 21 Jul 2011 @ 5:31am

Re:
Ohh Btw, Beer info about 312 obtained from Goose Island Directly: http://www.gooseisland.com/pages/312_urban_wheat/16.php

Info on what Bud might be made of comes from experience and confirmation from http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f37/budweiser-clone-105423/index2.html#post1157628
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Anonymous Coward, 21 Jul 2011 @ 5:43am

As if I can't tell the difference between a local beer and A.B.. Even if I am fooled into drinking one once, it will be a one-time occurrence.
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ComputerAddict (profile), 21 Jul 2011 @ 5:44am

Re:
Yea same here, in Vermont our definition of Beer is a little different than most of the country.
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Anonymous Coward, 21 Jul 2011 @ 5:54am

Re: Re:
Long Trail! I lovermont! except our representitives!

its too bad about NAB buying MH tho.
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Anonymous Coward, 21 Jul 2011 @ 5:55am

Re: Re:
i like beeradvocate.com for resource
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Anonymous Coward, 21 Jul 2011 @ 6:03am

Zip codes
I'm trademarking my zip code before they get any crazy ideas. Maybe I can make a lot of money selling them the trademark! I'll even make a shitty homebrew and name it that if that's what it takes.
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Richard (profile), 21 Jul 2011 @ 6:04am

Re:
312 Urban Wheat sounds identical to Budweiser:

You mean phoney Budweiser - real Budweiser - as brewed in the Czech Republic - is quite different. (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Budweiser) Of course this is simply history repeating itself - the AB thought the Budweiser name sounded good and so simply used it - then had the cheek to try and stop the original companies using the name.
It looks like they want to try the same trick with the area codes. Of course in Europe there is a tendency to require geographically based names of food products to be genuine so AB would have a hard time doing it over here.
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Dark Helmet (profile), 21 Jul 2011 @ 6:07am

Lame
312 used to be my go to beer. I actually used to do some work for Goose Island Brewing Co. as well.

Those bastards are experts at ruining good breweries....
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John William Nelson (profile), 21 Jul 2011 @ 6:09am

Geographic marks generally aren't allowable . . .
You'd have to add more to it. For example, someone mentioned 312 Urban Wheat. You might be able to trademark that�but that may still be problematic from a geographical mark standpoint.

And yes, I'd argue area codes would be geographically descriptive.
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Anonymous Coward, 21 Jul 2011 @ 6:13am

The trademarking is a pretty normal part of the process of rolling out products. Trademarking three digit numbers in relationship to beer isn't really a big thing. Not entirely sure why this would even merit a post on Techdirt. It's not exactly outside of the norm.
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nunya_bidness, 21 Jul 2011 @ 6:20am

Beer Definition
By definition beer is malt hops yeast and water, so Bud is not beer because it has rice in it, like so many other big brewers that cut thier formula with cheaper ingredients.
fake fake fake
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Christopher (profile), 21 Jul 2011 @ 6:22am

Umm, what?
The Czech beer came after the AB beer; Budweiser is a made-up name.
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non-anonymous coward (profile), 21 Jul 2011 @ 6:25am

Check out my new Beer
I've decided to market my own classic American pilsner. It's called:

1-800-DIAL-BUD

I just registered the trademark this morning. I'm asking the techdirt community to please let me know if anyone is stealing my mark.
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abc gum, 21 Jul 2011 @ 6:29am

Re:
"Trademarking three digit numbers ..."
"It's not exactly outside of the norm."

Really?

"The original Pentium branded CPUs were expected to be named 586 or i586, to follow the naming convention of previous generations (286, i386, i486). However, Intel was unable to persuade the court of law to allow them to trademark numbers (such as "i486")"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pentium

Also of interest - can you trademark a number?

http://message.snopes.com/showthread.php?t=46044
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Anonymous Coward, 21 Jul 2011 @ 6:30am

Re:
Or bad, in AB's case...
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Anonymous Coward, 21 Jul 2011 @ 6:37am

Re:
I have no idea which delusional made up facts Mike based that arrogant comment on, but AB do not repackage the same beer. They have tons of local breweries that make different recipes for the same beers.
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Anonymous Coward, 21 Jul 2011 @ 6:42am

Re: Umm, what?
Er, no. It's named after a city in the Czech Republic, where the original Budweiser was brewed:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C4%8Cesk%C3%A9_Bud%C4%9Bjovice

If you want a real Budweiser, try Budweiser Budvar (or Czechvar as it's known in America, according to Wikipedia).
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Nicedoggy, 21 Jul 2011 @ 6:47am

Re: Re:
Of course I believe you, I also believe in Santa Claus can you believe it?
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Mike42 (profile), 21 Jul 2011 @ 7:01am

Re:
Thank you for calling Bullshit! And in the first post, no less!
You can probably get it past the USPTO, but it won't hold in court.

It's a 586! It's a Pentium! It's a 586! It's a Pentium!
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Chuck Norris' Enemy (deceased) (profile), 21 Jul 2011 @ 7:05am

Re: actually...
For all my homies in cell block C - 713 Bowl Hops.
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Overcast (profile), 21 Jul 2011 @ 7:08am

Lame...
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Richard (profile), 21 Jul 2011 @ 7:29am

Re: Umm, what?
The Czech beer came after the AB beer; Budweiser is a made-up name.

If you had bothered to read the link I provided you would never have written that...
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Vidiot (profile), 21 Jul 2011 @ 7:34am

Turnpike trademarks
Flying Fish, a NJ microbrewery, has a collection of ales named after exits on the NJ Turnpike... Exit 1, near the Delaware Bay, inspires "Exit 1 - Bayshore Oyster Stout"; Exit 9, near Rutgers University's Scarlet Knights, gets "Exit 9 - Hoppy Scarlet Ale". And so on. The old joke is, "You're from Joisy? What exit?"; and this capitalizes on it big-time. So... trademark time for the words "Exit 3"?
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HothMonster, 21 Jul 2011 @ 7:38am

Re: Lame
yeah I was sad to see this one go to, I imagine the mass produced AB swill will be nothing like it. As someone else mentioned above I imagine AB's 312 is gonna taste a lot like Budweiser
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Anonymous Coward, 21 Jul 2011 @ 8:02am

What is all this about area code?

312 is the average daily road kill used in Chicago beer.
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Anonymous Coward, 21 Jul 2011 @ 8:09am

Re:
Have you actually HAD a 312? It tastes nothing like Budweiser.

Great job with nothing of substance.

It's actually a pretty good micro-brew.
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The Incoherent One (profile), 21 Jul 2011 @ 8:52am

A beer by that company regardless of name will lack substantially in areas of; flavor, body, color, and taste. I will stick to my craft and micro-brews thank you.
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ComputerAddict (profile), 21 Jul 2011 @ 9:14am

Re: Re: Re:
Beer Advocate is good for learning what people THINK about a beer, but not necessarily what is IN a beer.
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ComputerAddict (profile), 21 Jul 2011 @ 9:23am

Re: Re:
While technically correct, Czech bud came first, being an American blog site, I assumed that most readers would associate the name Bud with the company that made 13 billion more in profit, and is also a product of the company the article was about.

http://xkcd.com/386/
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Rich Fiscus (profile), 21 Jul 2011 @ 9:41am

It's more complicated than that
Didn't Intel discover that you can't trademark a number?
The use of 286, 386, and 486 as common names for previous generations of CPU architecture meant 586 was already used by the public to describe the original Pentium before it was even designed. Intel trademarked i586 in addition to Pentium, but chose to use the latter for marketing because it would be distinct from similar products like AMD's (trademarked) AM586.

Naming a beer after a zip code has no such problem. If you describe a beer to someone with a three digit number, they're not likely to even guess that it's a reference to where the beer comes from.
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Rich Fiscus (profile), 21 Jul 2011 @ 9:42am

Re: It's more complicated than that
Oops, I meant area code
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ComputerAddict (profile), 21 Jul 2011 @ 9:43am

Re: Re:
Did you read my post? Its pretty obvious I have not had it. with things like "sounds identical." Seeming how its over 1000 miles away to go try one.. probably won't until AB stocks it the next "Bud Light Lime".

I wouldn't say its "nothing of substance" Given the ingredients, Color, IBU, and other information provided by Goose Island, The creators of the beer, and experience from brewing beer myself I have a pretty good idea what it would taste like. It would probably be a little more hoppy than Bud / Bud light (from the IBU being 20 vs 5-10). Consider it like an Expert Witness in a court case.... He wasn't there but still knows a little about what hes talking about.
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ComputerAddict (profile), 21 Jul 2011 @ 9:46am

Re: Re: Re:
I like Sanders he is one of a few senators fighting for the people, to hell with Leahy...

Magic Hat has always been an interesting company, They have really great ideals, brewing "whatever they want" I want to like their beers, I used to drink #9... but most of their beer's taste like crap to me. You drink them because you like the concept. Once you start having other local beers like Long Trail, Switchback, Rock Art, etc. Magic Hat loses interest.
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ComputerAddict (profile), 21 Jul 2011 @ 9:50am

Re: Beer Definition
While bud does have rice in it, some say around 30%, I think there is still some barley malt in there... probably just enough to get around the legal issues of the 4 neccasary ingredients.
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gigglehurtz (profile), 21 Jul 2011 @ 9:54am

Re: Re:
Hey now. I learned right after Katrina that when you can't get any other beer, Budweiser tastes GREAT!

Of course, when things got back to (the new) normal...
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Anonymous Coward, 21 Jul 2011 @ 9:55am

Re:
There's nothing preventing someone from getting a trademark registration for a mark consisting of a number.
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Anonymous Coward, 21 Jul 2011 @ 9:58am

Re: Re:
What makes you think a number won't "hold up in court" as a trademark?

Just like every other trademark, it depends on how you use it and its relationship to the goods or services.
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Anonymous Coward, 21 Jul 2011 @ 10:00am

Re: If this was Europe
Actually, that could apply here as well. If a mark is deemed "misdescriptive" then there can be a problem.

http://www.patentlyo.com/patent/2009/04/trademark-mark-is-geographically-deceptively-mis descriptive-only-if-deception-is-material-to-a-substantial-portion-of-the-in.html
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HothMonster, 21 Jul 2011 @ 10:00am

Re: It's more complicated than that
312 was only sold in Chicago(land area) so everyone automatically new what the reference was. It didnt hurt that the tap handle was a telephone and a telephone was on the bottle either.

I imagine this is just a plan to sell the same beer with a different name in different cities. So where ever people drink it it is their area code.
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Anonymous Coward, 21 Jul 2011 @ 10:03am

Re:
So, you think Goose Island 312 started tasting different the moment AB bought Goose Island? Really?
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The Incoherent One (profile), 21 Jul 2011 @ 10:07am

Re: Re:
Wheat flavored piss, lime flavored piss, piss, piss light, ultra light piss (you can hardly taste). So your right they do makes "lots" of different ones.
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Anonymous Coward, 21 Jul 2011 @ 10:09am

Re: Re:
"Really?"

Yes, really. That single Pentium example does not make three-digit trademark registrations some extraordinary thing.

Also, while I wouldn't recommend Snopes for legal advice, that link supports the notion that number trademarks are no big deal: "Yes, you can trademark numbers (just as you can other words and phrases) for specific uses, and Boeing does in fact hold trademarks for model numbers such as 737."
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Anonymous Coward, 21 Jul 2011 @ 10:36am

Re: Re:
Not accurate. AB made Budweiser first. Then the Czech brewery tried to use the name, AFTER AB.
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The Incoherent One (profile), 21 Jul 2011 @ 10:37am

Re: Re:
No, but if they bought it then it probably fits into one of the afformentioned piss categories.
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Rich Fiscus (profile), 21 Jul 2011 @ 10:38am

Re: Re: It's more complicated than that
Perhaps, but it's still different. If you just say the name 312, few people will automatically assume you're talking about beer, even in the Chicago area. On the other hand, if you said 586 to someone familiar with computers in the early 90s, they would assume you were talking about a microprocessor.
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Anonymous Coward, 21 Jul 2011 @ 10:45am

Re: Re: Re:
No, you are not an "expert witness" 312 is a summer wheat beer. It is more like Blue Moon than Bud. As someone with homebrewing experience, you should know better than to assume that similar ingredients should make something "identical"

I doubt that bud has torrified wheat. I think it does have corn though.
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JMG, 21 Jul 2011 @ 11:30am

Re: Re: It's more complicated than that
Only sold in Chicago? Was this for a limited time or something? Used to be able to get it all over Kentucky. Very recognizable because of the telephone as the tap. It was pretty popular here too, but was probably my least favorite of the Goose Island flavors that rotate around here.
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Anonymous Coward, 21 Jul 2011 @ 12:23pm

Re: Re: Re: Re:
Yeah, weird that his comparison of a wheat beer to Bud/Bud Light would focus on being a "little more hoppy" due to IBUs.
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Anonymous Coward, 21 Jul 2011 @ 12:26pm

Re: Re: Re:
Goose Island isn't my favorite brewery, but they make a lot of non-piss beers.

I guess some beer snobs are so eager to show how elite their tastes are that they make judgments based on labels rather than facts/taste.
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MAC, 21 Jul 2011 @ 12:29pm

Rediculous
Ok AB, so that will be $250.00 US per year to use my er your local area code on my letters...
Wait, letters are no longer valid because everyone uses email!
Rubbish, email can be hacked, mess with a letter and you will face the postal inspectors!
Besides, we really don't want the art of handwriting to disappear now do we?
I like paper, its nice, does not require electricity, lasts for centuries and cannot be altered without leaving a trail that can be detected.
PAPER RULES!
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MAC, 21 Jul 2011 @ 12:31pm

Re: Rediculous
Before you think I am an idiot this is a spoof!
But beware, someone will try to trademark zip codes...
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indieThing (profile), 22 Jul 2011 @ 3:42am

If you believe the Google ads
3, the mobile operator have a trademark on this number :)

I think it may be the particular expression though, as their logo is a nicely designed number 3.
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abc gum, 22 Jul 2011 @ 5:06am

Re: Re: Re:
"Yes, really. That single Pentium example does not make three-digit trademark registrations some extraordinary thing"

Is not getting their three-digit trademark outside the norm?
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HothMonster, 22 Jul 2011 @ 10:35am

Re: Re: Re: It's more complicated than that
"Only sold in Chicago? Was this for a limited time or something? Used to be able to get it all over Kentucky."

No that was a year round beer. Sorry for my ignorance I didn't know Goose Island was distributing elsewhere these days. I know in my college years I never saw it elsewhere in the midwest. These days when I travel I look for beers that arnt available to me not my local go-to. So if its been in other places I guess I just never noticed. But checking the Wiki it looks like they went semi-national in 2006.
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Anonymous Coward, 22 Jul 2011 @ 10:36am

Re: Re: Re: It's more complicated than that
meh, context.

If if someone just said 312 my mind would think of this beer or the area code and if someone just said 586 i would probably think of processors.

But if someone just walked up and said three numbers to me I imagine my first thought would be that they are crazy.
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Anonymous Coward, 3 Dec 2013 @ 4:24am

Re: Umm, what?
So, Budweiser Bier B�rgerbr�u is Founded in 1795 by German-speaking citizens of Budweis, which began exporting Budweiser Bier to the United States in 1875, a year before AB started making their own Budweiser in 1876, so yeah, that Czech Republic company totally stole the name Budweiser from AB and not from the the town they started in... before AB did it... yeah... I also have some swamp land in Florida I am trying to sell, you interested?
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