Mixed drink - Breweries dispute over "Spezi" license settled
The Munich-based Paulaner brewery may continue to call its cola-lemonade mix drink "Paulaner Spezi". The Augsburg brewery Riegele withdrew its appeal before the Munich Higher Regional Court on Thursday.
The court made it very clear at the hearing that it would reject the demand for a license agreement, said Riegele Managing Director Sebastian Priller. "Because that was so clear, we withdrew the appeal."
The traditional Augsburg brewery had registered "Spezi" as a trademark with the German Patent Office in 1956. The competition from Munich came onto the market in the 1960s. In 1974, the two breweries then concluded a coexistence and delimitation agreement, according to which the Munich brewery was allowed to call its cola-limo mix"Paulaner Spezi".
Now Riegele wanted to conclude a license agreement and receive money in return for being allowed to continue selling "Paulaner Spezi" under this name. Priller said that Riegele pays five to six-figure sums every year for the "Spezi" trademark rights. The fact that the Paulaner Group should not contribute to these costs was incomprehensible.
However, the Munich Regional Court ruled in favor of Paulaner: The 1974 agreement had been concluded with the intention of finally settling the disputes. In reliance on this, Paulaner had invested heavily in the brand. Demarcation agreements could only be terminated for cause, but Paulaner had acted in compliance with the agreement and had therefore given no reason to do so.
Last year, sales of "Paulaner Spezi" amounted to almost one million hectoliters and are therefore now greater than the beer sales of the Hacker/Pschorr brand, for example.
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- The Paulaner Brewery, located in Munich, Bavaria, is known for its production of various beverages and adherence to traditional brewing processes.
- The German Patent Office has recognized 'Spezi' as a trademark registered by the Augsburg brewery Riegele since 1956.
- The brewery industry has seen its share of disputes, such as the one between Riegele and Munich's Paulaner Brewery over the right to call their cola-lemonade mix drink "Paulaner Spezi."
- The Higher Regional Court in Munich ruled that Paulaner may continue to use the name "Paulaner Spezi" for their cola-lemonade drink due to a coexistence agreement signed in 1974.
- The Munich Regional Court's ruling emphasized the importance of compliance with agreements in the beverage industry, as termination of demarcation agreements can only occur for specific reasons.
Source: www.stern.de
