Search engine giant Google has seen itself come up against another major lawsuit today as American Airlines accuse the company of selling search words that involved the airline's name. Google is accused of selling search terms, such as the company's title and website address, to other firms for advertising purposes. This is a violation of trademark laws, according to American Airlines.
Google, however, has indicated that its trademark policy "strikes a proper balance" between consumer choice and trademark owners' interests.
Commenting on the lawsuit, American Airlines spokesman Billy Sanez said: "When done right, search is a great tool, but we have a problem with this part of their business."
Another company statement read: "In working through this business dispute, American [Airlines] is hopeful that it will continue professional, friendly and fruitful relationships with Google, while finding an appropriate resolution to the trademark issues."
In response, Google stated that it was confident of its position as it "has been validated by decisions in previous trademark cases".
The lawsuit brought by auto insurer Geico is one of the aforementioned cases to which Google could be referring. However, the search engine still faces a trial later this year in a case brought by American Blind and Wallpaper Factory.
During the 2004 Geico case, the judge said that using trademarks as keywords in order to prompt advertising was not trademark infringement, according to Michael Page, a partner at Google representatives Keker & Van Nest.
Earlier this year, the US state of Utah passed a law that made it illegal for search engines to display the advertisements of rival companies alongside search results for an electronically trademarked company name.
