Dr Pepper Snapple Group, Inc. (NYSE: DPS) has filed a lawsuit against Dr Pepper Bottling Co. of Dublin, Texas in the U.S. District Court in the Eastern District of Texas, alleging that the Dublin bottling company has violated its license agreement by selling Dublin Dr Pepper ouside of a six-county territory. Dr Pepper Snapple has also alleged the unauthorized use of the term “Dublin Dr Pepper” on packaging and on merchandise. The relief sought by Dr Pepper Snapple includes restricting sales of "Dublin Dr Pepper" on the Dublin Dr Pepper website and toll-free number. Dr Pepper Snapple additionally seeks attorneys’ fees.
Earlier this month Dublin Dr Pepper filed its answer and counterclaim.
The answer states: “Corporate Dr Pepper has… reveled and openly welcomed the free exposure and increased name recognition provided by Dublin Dr Pepper”
“Corporate Dr Pepper has approved bottle and can designs with ‘DUBLIN DR PEPPER’… as recently as late 2010.”
The answer further states that “Dublin Dr Pepper’s annual sales, before costs and expenses are removed, are less than 1/10th of 1 percent of the total sales of Corporate Dr Pepper and are less than the annual compensation of its current president and CEO.”
Most interestingly, Dublin Dr Pepper’s answer includes archived examples of the Dr Pepper Snapple website including links to the Dublin Dr Pepper website and toll-free number. Those links no longer are posted.
