Anheuser-Busch InBev wants to make Budweiser a truly global brand.

But it would help to do something about those other Budweisers that are running around Eastern Europe.

The brewing giant took a step toward that Thursday, when it confirmed the purchase of a small Czech brewery, one of two that the company has fought in court for decades over the right to use its iconic brand.

A-B InBev has purchased Budjovicky Mestansky Pivovar (BMP), the smaller of two breweries from the Czech town of Ceska Budejovice. Both have long claimed that they -- and not A-B InBev -- own the right to sell a beer called Budweiser on world markets. No purchase price was disclosed, and the only assets A-B InBev bought was BMP's Budweiser trademarks – its parent company transferred the actual brewery and employees to a different firm prior to the sale. Still, the deal could have big ramifications.

It eliminates one of A-B InBev's two opponents in dozens of lawsuits around the world over the Budweiser brand. The other – the larger Budejovicky Budvar – still remains. But the Czech government has been talking in recent years about privatizing the state-owned brewery, and analysts in Prague suggest that the BMP deal could signal A-B InBev's intentions to buy at least a share of its rival and end the brand dispute altogether.

Aside from a statement confirming the purchase, A-B InBev had little comment.

The spat stretches back more than a century, with all three breweries claiming a historical right to the name Budweiser. They have been in court since the mid-70s, fighting trademark disputes in country after country as both Anheuser-Busch and Budvar moved into export markets. Today, Budvar sells better in Eastern and Central Europe, as well as Germany and France, while Anheuser-Busch is on top in Latin America, Asia and southern Europe. In the U.S., ironically, A-B InBev distributes Budvar's signature lager under the name Czechvar.

A big part of InBev's strategy when it purchased Anheuser-Busch three years ago was launching Budweiser onto a global stage. The brewer has already begun sales in Russia and Brazil, and is investing heavily in World Cup sponsorships to make beer drinkers all over the planet even more familiar with its famous name.

Now, it appears to be trying to clean up any confusion about just which Budweiser all those beer drinkers will be talking about.