Oakland’s airport can use “San Francisco” in its name under a new settlement agreement that ends a two-year trademark dispute between the neighboring California cities.
In March 2024, Oakland officials voted to change the name of the city’s airport from Metropolitan Oakland International Airport to San Francisco Bay Oakland International Airport in hopes of improving traffic at the struggling facility. Oakland leaders argued that travelers unfamiliar with the San Francisco Bay Area did not realize how close Oakland could be to their destination. He said adding “San Francisco” to the name would help guide visitors.
The City of San Francisco, which owns San Francisco International Airport, filed a lawsuit, arguing that the name change was a trademark violation, creating unfair competition and confusing travelers. In November 2024, a federal judge agreed with San Francisco and issued an injunction against Oakland using that name.
Oakland officials then changed the name of the airport again to Oakland San Francisco Bay Airport. The City of San Francisco applied to amend its claim to challenge the new name.
Under the agreement signed last week and made public Tuesday, Oakland can continue to use the “Oakland San Francisco Bay Airport” name as long as it adheres to certain marketing agreements. For example, Oakland cannot highlight the words “San Francisco” in fonts or colors that extend them within the airport’s name or promote its airport using the word “San Francisco”. The agreement states that the word “San Francisco” must be preceded by “Oakland” in all marketing materials.
Smaller airports like Oakland have struggled in recent years, and the name change two years ago was an effort to convince people visiting the Bay Area to consider Oakland as a viable alternative to the larger and better-known San Francisco airport.
“We are proud that Oakland fought for our airport and reserved the right to retain our airport’s full name, which puts Oakland first and recognizes Oak’s location on San Francisco Bay,” Port of Oakland attorney Mary Richardson said in a statement Tuesday, using the facility’s three-letter airport code.
San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu said in a statement that he was pleased the city and Oakland reached an agreement that both parties are satisfied with. “When more tourists come to the Bay Area, our entire region benefits,” he said. “San Francisco cares deeply about the success of all of our Bay Area airports and tourism destinations.”
It’s not entirely clear whether the rebrand will help Oakland’s traffic. The name agreed upon in the agreement remains in place since last summer, but traffic at the airport has decreased. As of February, passenger traffic in Oakland had declined nearly 14 percent year over year, according to port of oaklandWhile domestic travel at the national level has been relatively flat.
