[E-trademarks] Law School Quiz - Let's Fly to Court

[Scott Landsbaum]

The City of Oakland, California, announced that it intends to re-brand
Oakland International Airport as San Francisco Bay Oakland International
Airport.  The City of San Francisco sued the City of Oakland, claiming the
name change will infringe on the City of San Francisco's registered
trademark for San Francisco International Airport for airport services.
Your questions:

   1. As a trademark examiner, would you have allowed the City of San
   Francisco to register  San Francisco International Airport for airport
   services or would you have refused the mark as being descriptive of airport
   services for the City of San Francisco?  In your answer, address the impact
   of whether the airport is physically within or outside of San Francisco's
   city and county limits and whether your answer depends on the percentage of
   airport users who actually live in the City or County of San Francisco.
   2. Does the name San Francisco Bay Oakland International Airport
   function as a trademark?  That is, does the name serve as a source
   identifier for airport services provided by the City of Oakland?
   3. Assume both airport names are valid trademarks. Are they confusingly
   similar?  In your answer, address the use by consumers of the three letter
   airport codes, SFO (San Francisco) and OAK (Oakland).  If the City of
   Oakland changes the three letter code to SFB (San Francisco Bay), does that
   impact your analysis?
   4. Assume neither airport names are valid trademarks for airport
   services.  Would the City of San Francisco be able to prohibit the City of
   Oakland from using the name on ancillary merchandise, such as shirts and
   mugs?  What facts would you need for your analysis?

Resources:
https://abcnews.go.com/US/san-francisco-oakland-airport-name-lawsuit/story?id=109394761
https://tsdr.uspto.gov/#caseNumber=85421298&caseSearchType=US_APPLICATION&caseType=DEFAULT&searchType=statusSearch

Regards,
Scott

Scott Landsbaum, Inc.
323-314-7881 / f 323-714-2454
8306 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 420, Beverly Hills, CA  90211
www.scottlandsbaum.com / www.linkedin.com/in/scottlandsbaum/

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