American Airlines sues Yahoo over trademarked search ads
CNET reports that American Airlines has filed a trademark infringement lawsuit against Yahoo claiming it is diverting business to the airline’s competitors by allowing them to purchase ads that appear next to American Airlines-related search results.
The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Forth Worth, Texas, late last week, is similar to one that American Airlines filed against Google last year and then settled earlier this year.
The airline contends that allowing other companies to purchase ads that are displayed when someone searches on an American Airlines-trademarked term confuses the public and directs potential American Airlines customers to other companies.
Yahoo spokeswoman Kelley Benander provided this statement via e-mail: “We have confidence in our trademark policies and are prepared to defend them in court.”
Yahoo’s search marketing policies differ from Google’s in that they only allow advertisers to use trademarks for sponsored search listings if they are resellers of the products or services of the trademark holder.
Eric Goldman, an associate professor of law at Santa Clara University School of Law and director of the school’s High Tech Law Institute, said he was surprised by the lawsuit and predicted that the two sides will reach a settlement.
A Report by The Mole
John Alwyn-Jones
Have your say Cancel reply
Subscribe/Login to Travel Mole Newsletter
Travel Mole Newsletter is a subscriber only travel trade news publication. If you are receiving this message, simply enter your email address to sign in or register if you are not. In order to display the B2B travel content that meets your business needs, we need to know who are and what are your business needs. ITR is free to our subscribers.
































Global tourism exceeds 1.5 billion travelers announces UN-Tourism
Qatar Airways offers reduced timetable to over 60 destinations
WTTC global tourism reached record economic impact of 11 trillion in 2025
Hands In, UATP join forces for airline multi-card payments
Overseas travelers to the United States declined by 2.5% in 2025