--- title: "Red Bull | Huabin Sues Tiansi, Is This Why Anaji Has Not Launched?" description: "On April 16, the Beijing Court Trial Information Network published a civil ruling on a contract dispute involving Red Bull Vitamin Beverage Co., Ltd. The disclosure reveals new developments in the Red Bull case, with Huabin Group's Red Bull company suing Thailand's Tiansi for infringement and seeking exclusive production and sales rights until 2045." author: "澄韵" publisher: "New Distribution" email: "zhaobo258@gmail.com" telephone: "+8615854817671" published: "2019-04-18" language: "en" canonical: "https://xinjignxiao.com/en/articles/red-bull-huabin-sues-tiansi-is-this-why-anaji-has-not-launched-2a6ea9f7/" markdown: "https://xinjignxiao.com/en/articles/red-bull-huabin-sues-tiansi-is-this-why-anaji-has-not-launched-2a6ea9f7.md" original_source: "https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/bjjzBYrJBjSE1s538N_Ejg" translation: "https://xinjignxiao.com/zh/articles/%E7%BA%A2%E7%89%9B-%E5%8D%8E%E5%BD%AC%E7%8A%B6%E5%91%8A%E5%A4%A9%E4%B8%9D-%E5%AE%89%E5%A5%88%E5%90%89%E8%BF%9F%E8%BF%9F%E4%B8%8D%E4%B8%8A%E5%B8%82%E6%98%AF%E5%9B%A0%E4%B8%BA%E8%BF%99%E4%B8%AA-2a6ea9f7.md" attribution: "New Distribution — https://xinjignxiao.com/en/articles/red-bull-huabin-sues-tiansi-is-this-why-anaji-has-not-launched-2a6ea9f7/" usage_policy: "https://xinjignxiao.com/ai-policy.txt" --- # Red Bull | Huabin Sues Tiansi, Is This Why Anaji Has Not Launched? > On April 16, the Beijing Court Trial Information Network published a civil ruling on a contract dispute involving Red Bull Vitamin Beverage Co., Ltd. The disclosure reveals new developments in the Red Bull case, with Huabin Group's Red Bull company suing Thailand's Tiansi for infringement and seeking exclusive production and sales rights until 2045. On April 16, the Beijing Court Trial Information Network published a civil ruling on a contract dispute involving Red Bull Vitamin Beverage Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Red Bull Company"). The information disclosed shows some new progress in the Red Bull case. According to the court ruling, Red Bull Company, affiliated with Huabin Group, sued Thailand's Tiansi Medical and Health Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Tiansi Company") for infringement, raising multiple claims. Overall, the main demands of Red Bull Company this time are: > **1.** Red Bull Company has the exclusive right to produce and sell Red Bull compound vitamin functional beverages in China before November 9, 2045; > > **2.** Tiansi Company must not produce or sell Red Bull beverages in China in any form before November 9, 2045. Previously, cases were mostly Tiansi suing Red Bull over trademark licensing expiration. With the trademark dispute at a standstill, why is Red Bull now suing Tiansi, and on what basis? 01 **Reasons for Red Bull Company's Lawsuit** In March 2018, news about a Red Bull Anaji beverage went viral on social media. A post by Feiyu, editor-in-chief of the FMCG Elite Club, revealed a photo of the Anaji functional drink authorized by Tiansi, ready to launch in China with the Red Bull trademark. From the photo, the Tiansi version of Red Bull is 98% similar to the current Red Bull product sold by Red Bull Company: the same gold can, same specifications, same three-piece can, except the product name at the bottom changed from **"Red Bull Vitamin Functional Beverage" to "Red Bull® Anaji Beverage"**. For a time, the industry was in an uproar. In 2018 alone, Tiansi and Red Bull initiated over 20 lawsuits and statements through legal channels and media, all ending with courts yet to rule or statements remaining unclear. The appearance of Anaji was like a deep-water bomb, directly breaking the unclear situation. For Red Bull Company, this was tantamount to tearing off the mask, escalating the dispute to a breaking point. It is understood that this lawsuit is the first time Red Bull Company has "counterattacked" against the existence of Anaji. ** _1_ ** Signing and Performance of the "50-Year Agreement" Earlier, Red Bull officially issued a statement saying that the 20-year business registration period was only to meet the special requirements for foreign investment registration approval at the time of company establishment, and does not mean the company's operating period is only 20 years. This time, Red Bull Company cited the "50-Year Agreement," stating that on November 10, 1995, Red Bull Company signed an "Agreement" with joint venture partners China Food Industry Corporation (hereinafter "Zhongshi Company"), Shenzhen Zhonghao (Group) Co., Ltd. (hereinafter "Zhonghao Company"), and Tiansi Company, stipulating relevant matters. > Article 1: **Only Red Bull Company has the right to produce and sell Red Bull beverages in China;** Red Bull Company and Tiansi Company, without written consent or permission from Zhonghao and Zhongshi, must not produce or contract other companies to produce or sell similar products of Red Bull beverages in China. > > Article 7: The "50-Year Agreement" is valid for 50 years from the date of signing. Based on the above, within 50 years from the signing date (i.e., before November 9, 2045), only Red Bull Company has the right to produce and sell Red Bull beverages in China; and **without written consent from Zhonghao and Zhongshi, Tiansi must not produce or contract other companies to produce or sell similar products of Red Bull beverages in China.** ** _2_ ** Tiansi's Breach of Contract by Licensing Red Bull Company mentioned that it discovered Tiansi licensed its Red Bull trademark to Guangzhou Yaonengli Beverage Co., Ltd. (hereinafter "Yaonengli Company"). This beverage not only uses the Red Bull trademark but also has highly similar product ingredients and packaging to Red Bull Company's product. This behavior seriously infringes on Red Bull Company's exclusive right to produce and sell Red Bull beverages in China, constituting a serious breach of contract by Tiansi. It also pointed out that Tiansi's true intention is to seize the fruits of victory that Red Bull Company and the Chinese joint venture partners have cultivated over 20 years. ** _3_ ** Red Bull Company Mentions Significant Losses In the lawsuit, Red Bull Company stated that the news of Anaji's launch has had a major impact on the market sales of Red Bull products. Additionally, Anaji's use of the Red Bull trademark could mislead consumers into thinking it is a Red Bull Company product, causing immeasurable goodwill damage to Red Bull Company. **These three counterattacks all point directly to the non-compliance of Anaji's appearance.** 02 **What Did the Court Say?** This case was filed on October 8, 2018, and ruled on January 3, 2019. The court's ruling was that, based on the content and claims of the case, it does not fall under the jurisdiction of the Beijing Fourth Intermediate People's Court and was transferred to the Beijing Dongcheng District People's Court. In other words, after all this, there is still no substantive judgment. However, in this court ruling, **New Distribution also discovered some interpretations of the events provided by the court, from which we might glean some insights.** ** _1_ ** This Case Falls Under Intellectual Property Disputes The Beijing Fourth Intermediate People's Court held that since Red Bull Company's claims mainly seek confirmation of its exclusive right to produce and sell Red Bull beverages in China and to order Tiansi not to produce or sell Red Bull beverages in China, this case falls under the sub-category of intellectual property disputes—franchise contract disputes. That is, whether the terms of the "50-Year Agreement" are valid is crucial. ** _2_ ** Evidence Still in Question The court pointed out that the "Agreement" submitted by Red Bull Company as basic evidence is dated November 10, 1995, while Red Bull Company's business license records its establishment on September 30, 1998. Moreover, the third party to the contract is Zhongtai Red Bull Company, not Red Bull Company, indicating inconsistencies on the face of the evidence. It is understood that at the time of signing, Red Bull Company was a Sino-foreign joint venture (then tentatively named Zhongtai Red Bull Vitamin Beverage Co., Ltd.) and signed the contract with Tiansi, Zhonghao, and Zhongshi. Furthermore, whether Red Bull Company's claim that it is the successor to Zhongtai Red Bull Company's rights and obligations, and the authenticity of the November 10, 1995 "Agreement," still need further verification through other evidence. Thus, after the case is transferred to the Beijing Dongcheng District People's Court, a long period of investigation and evidence collection is still needed, and it is difficult to know when a trial result will be issued. 03 **Anaji Delayed Launch, Rumors of Dissolution?** Since Anaji's launch was rumored last year, New Distribution has been following the developments. But up to now, Anaji has still not made a move, with rumors of team dissolution in between. Coupled with the disclosure of Red Bull Company's lawsuit against Tiansi, one cannot help but suspect that **the reason Anaji has not launched may be related to the unresolved lawsuit.** In this regard, New Distribution contacted an Anaji employee, Lao Wang, to understand the current situation. Lao Wang told New Distribution that Anaji's distributor recruitment was basically completed in 2018, with most distributors poached from Red Bull's old distribution system. These distributors have high expectations for Anaji, frequently asking about payment and shipping information. But as of now, Anaji has not started the production process, and no one has received goods. However, the rumors of dissolution are false. The Tiansi team is currently preparing for the launch, with some saying it will be in June. But this news also raises doubts: the beverage production peak season is approaching, and all beverage companies will face capacity shortages. For Anaji, which was previously reported to have Hefei Uni-President Enterprises Co., Ltd. as its contract manufacturer, facing capacity shortages in its first battle, how can it compete with Red Bull Company? In the current domestic functional beverage market, with the unresolved dispute between Red Bull Company and Tiansi, various competitors are also seizing opportunities to grab market share. Additionally, fake Red Bull beverages have emerged due to the dispute, appearing on shelves alongside Red Bull, and uninformed consumers may buy them, affecting Red Bull Company's market share. However, Red Bull Company's 20-plus years of market foundation and position should not be underestimated; many companies have tried to challenge its status but failed. Whether Anaji can successfully launch remains a mystery. We speculate that until the lawsuit is resolved, Anaji may continue to remain silent. Extended Reading **-END-** --- ## Copyright and AI use This article is sourced from New Distribution. Search, quotation, summarization, and model training are permitted, but every use must credit New Distribution and retain the canonical source URL. Contact: zhaobo258@gmail.com · +86 158 5481 7671