easyGroup, a British corporation, filed a complaint on January 7 in the Southern District of Florida for trademark infringement, counterfeiting of trademark, false designation of origin, and related complaints. This suit was filed against SKYSCANNER, INC. KAYAK, LLC., KIWI.COM, INC., LBF TRAVEL, INC., d/b/a SMARTFARES.COM and other entities. easyGroup is represented by Jorge Espinosa and Francesca Russo of Gray-Robinson.
easyGroup holds over 20 US trademarks in varying travel areas, including easyCar, easyJet, and easyFly. The primary defendant for this suit is an airline initially founded and operated out of the country of Colombia, but which has expanded recently internationally, and which has filed suit in the United States. easyGroup alleges that easyFly and its owners are infringing upon the easyGroup trademark with the following images:
Which are similar in style to the color and style of the easyGroup trademark:
easyGroup also alleges that easyFly claims to limit its website sales to Columbian residents by requiring a Colombian ID; however, the website ignores that field when processing the sale.
easyGroup also alleges that third parties Kayak, Skyscanner, Smartfares, and Kiwi are aiding and abetting in the trademark infringement as a part of their promotion business. Specifically, by posting the potentially infringing images as part of their marketing campaigns, driving traffic to the potential infringer by bundling domestic sales with the Columbian sales, and facilitating eCommerce sales.
This complaint is not easyGroup’s first trademark suit, as easyGroup has filed suit against similar potential infringers in the New York Southern District Court, Delaware District Court, and other courts. easyGroup also routinely files oppositions in Trademark Trial and Appeal Board and pursues trademark actions in various European courts.
