SAN FRANCISCO — A federal decide on Tuesday blocked the renaming of Oakland Worldwide Airport, ruling that including “San Francisco Bay” to the title would trigger vacationers to mistakenly consider that the East Bay airport is affiliated with or run by the identical administration as San Francisco’s airport.
The Port of Oakland, which operates the airport, advised San Francisco officers in March of a plan to rename the airport, however West Bay officers objected to the plan on the grounds that the change would improve the “likelihood of confusion” between the 2 airports, in line with court docket filings.
The town and county of San Francisco filed the lawsuit looking for an injunction on April 18 alleging trademark infringement, unfair competitors and false designation of the airport, in line with court docket paperwork.
U.S. Justice of the Peace Thomas S. Hixson’s ruling on Tuesday dismissed two of San Francisco’s claims – that the title change would trigger “initial interest confusion” through which an organization makes use of a competitor’s trademark to falsely direct consideration to them, and that the title change would trigger “point of sale confusion,” through which passengers would mistakenly purchase tickets to the mistaken airport, in line with court docket filings.
“The court order temporarily blocks OAK’s new name on the basis of the third type of alleged confusion: that travelers may think OAK is affiliated with SFO,” Port of Oakland spokesperson Robert Bernardo stated in a press release. “OAK is not associated with SFO, of course, but is rather a convenient and centrally located option for travelers throughout the Bay Area.”
Bernardo added that the Port of Oakland is contemplating all out there authorized choices.
A consultant from the San Francisco Metropolis Legal professional’s Workplace didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.
This can be a creating report. Please examine again for updates.
