This week on Thursday (April 18), the San Francisco City Attorney’s Office announced that the city of San Francisco has filed a trademark infringement lawsuit against the city of Oakland regarding the proposed renaming of Oakland Airport.
Last week, the Port of Oakland Commission unanimously voted to approve the preliminary proposal to rename Oakland Airport to San Francisco Bay Oakland International Airport and has scheduled a second vote for May 9 to finalize the proposal.
The airport is currently known as Metropolitan Oakland International Airport.
San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu stated that the new name not only infringes on the brand of San Francisco International Airport but also could lead to confusion and potential travel disasters for those unfamiliar with the area or whose native language is not English.
Chiu mentioned that San Francisco officials had proposed to work with Oakland to find an alternative name, but the proposal was rejected.
“We had hoped that Oakland would come to their senses, but their refusal to cooperate in finding an acceptable alternative name left us with no choice but to file a lawsuit to protect the trademark of San Francisco International Airport,” Chiu stated in a press release. “This new name will cause confusion for travelers, thereby harming the tourism industry in the entire region. We have already seen at least one airline using the new name, indicating that San Francisco International Airport has suffered economic losses.”
San Francisco is seeking a court order to stop Oakland Airport from proceeding with the renaming and to rule that the new name infringes on the trademark of San Francisco International Airport.
Chiu remarked, “The renaming scheme appears to be intentionally designed to divert travelers who may not be familiar with the geography of the Bay Area, leading them to believe that Oakland Airport is in business partnership with San Francisco International Airport, which is not the case.”
Oakland Airport officials stated they plan to proceed with the renaming and will defend their right to do so in court.
The Port of Oakland stated in a release, “The proposed renaming by Oakland does not infringe on San Francisco International Airport’s trademark. We will vigorously defend our rights in the San Francisco Bay.”