You can tell that it’s Fall up here in the Great White North.  The weather is turning cooler, the NHL preseason is in full swing and another trademark battle between Canadian brewery icons Molson and Labatts has started. 

A recent report indicates that Molson Coors Brewing Company has launched a lawsuit in Canada’s Federal Court against Labatt Breweries of Canada, claiming that the mountain imagery in new ads for Labatt Kokanee beer infringes the copyrighted images that Molson uses on its Coors Light beer products in Canada.  Molson is reportedly seeking $10 million in damages.

For its part, Labatts says that mountain imagery has been part of its branding for four decades and that the new graphics feature the same Kokanee Glacier that the beer is named after.

News today that another battle is brewing in Canada’s notoriously litigious beer industry: Waterloo’s Brick Brewing Co. Ltd.–makers of Canadian beer brands Laker, Formosa, Red Cap, Red Baron and Waterloo–has been sued by Anheuser-Busch Co. and Labatt Brewing Co. over its labels for its Red Baron Lime beer product.

In the suit filed August 28 in Federal Court, Anheuser and Labatt take umbrage with the promotional material for Brick’s Red Baron Lime product.  In particular, they allege the labeling scheme used on Red Baron Lime products, including the use of the colours silver and green together with the depiction of a half a lime, will confuse consumers into believing there is a connection with their own Bud Light Lime product, whose label uses the colours green and white together with the depiction of a wedge of lime.

Additionally, Anheuser and Labatt have claimed that Brick’s promotional website for Red Baron Lime–located at lustforlime.com–will lead to consumers to believe there is a connection with the product and the promotional website for Bud Light Lime located at budlightlime.com.  Both sites feature prominent use of the colour green and images of young people in swimsuits. Read more