Bud Light certainly has a sense of humor when it comes to cease-and-desist notices.
Modist Brewing, a craft brewing company located in Minneapolis, Minnesota, recently launched a new Mosaic Double IPA they named “Dilly Dilly,” which, for those living under a rock, is a phrase Bud Light recently started using in their latest marketing campaign. Rather than send a traditional cease-and-desist letter, Anheuser-Busch InBev sent a medieval town crier to the Modist Brewing Company. The town crier theatrically unrolled a scroll and, in Old English, proclaimed:
“Hear ye, hear ye. Dear friend of the crown, Modist Brewing Company, congratulations on the launch of your new brew: Dilly Dilly Mosaic Double IPA. Let it be known that we believe that any beer that is shared between friends is a fine beer indeed. And, we are duly flattered by your royal tribute. However, ‘Dilly Dilly’ is the motto of our realm. So, we humbly ask that you keep this to a limited addition one-time-only run. This is by order of the king. Disobedience shall be met with additional scrolls, then a formal warning, and finally, a private tour of the pit of misery. Please send a raven, letter, or electronic mail to let us know that you agree to this request.”
Modist had developed the new beer and settled on the name “Dilly Dilly,” but, when they checked the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to see if the name had already been claimed, they found Anheuser-Busch InBev had trademarked the phrase.
Kale Anderson, from Modist, said, “we realized the slogan was trademarked by Bud Light, not as a beer but just as a slogan, and got a little scared there for a little bit, but then we said, ‘Screw it, let’s see what happens.’ And that’s what happens.”
Modist’s attorney, Jeff O’Brien, has seen numerous cease-and-desist letters, but none as comical and good natured as this one. “There’s so many brewery names and beer names out there, and we try to resolve it short of suing each other,” O’Brien said. “They did it in a funny way and protected their mark. I thought it was a really cool way of handling it.”
In keeping with their good nature, Anheuser-Busch InBev offered Modist employees two “throne” seats to the 2018 Super Bowl where they can imbibe “in a few Bud Lights” on Bud Light’s tab. When asked how they will choose who gets the tickets, Modist said “if we do accept the offer, we’ll likely host a jousting tournament in the back to see who gets to go.”
Modist sent the crier home with a growler of the beer they will now call “Coat Tail” and proudly displayed the scroll on its menu board.
The nonsensical phrase “Dilly Dilly” has caught on and exceeded even the expectations of Anheuser-Busch InBev. Many are curious to the meaning of “Dilly Dilly.” When asked, Anheuser-Busch InBev Chief Marketing Officer, Miguel Patricio, said, “’Dilly Dilly’ doesn’t mean anything. That’s the beauty of it. I think that we all need our moments of nonsense and fun. And I think that ‘Dilly Dilly,’ in a way, represents that.”
Suiter Swantz IP is a full-service intellectual property law firm, based in Omaha, NE, serving all of Nebraska, Iowa, and South Dakota. If you have any intellectual property questions or need assistance with any patent, trademark, or copyright matters and would like to speak with one of our patent attorneys please contact us.