MillerCoors, LLC v. Anheuser-Busch Companies, LLC

In 2019, Anheuser-Busch Companies, LLC (defendant) ran a national advertising campaign indicating that Anheuser-Busch’s Bud Light beer was brewed using rice, while competitor beers Miller Lite and Coors Light were brewed using corn syrup. According to MillerCoors, LLC (plaintiff), which brewed Miller Lite and Coors Light, corn syrup was used in the beers’ fermentation processes, but no corn syrup appeared in Miller Lite or Coors Light’s final products. A consumer survey, consumer communications to MillerCoors, and social-media reactions to Anheuser-Busch’s advertisements suggested that consumers were confused about whether Miller Lite and Coors Light contained corn syrup. MillerCoors sued Anheuser-Busch, alleging deceptive advertising in violation of the Lanham Act. MillerCoors identified many allegedly misleading statements in Anheuser-Busch’s advertisements, including (1) the phrases “made with,” “brewed with,” or “uses” corn syrup; (2) the assertions that Bud Light has “100 percent less corn syrup than Miller Lite or Coors Light” or has “no corn syrup”; and (3) any references to corn syrup as an “ingredient.” MillerCoors sought a preliminary injunction prohibiting Anheuser-Busch from using those statements. In considering the request for injunctive relief, the court analyzed, among other things, MillerCoors’s likelihood of success on its deceptive-advertising claim.