DENVER - The Salt Lake Convention and Visitors Bureau and four Utah ski resorts have been sued over their recent "Ski City U.S.A." campaign.
The trademark infringement lawsuit was filed last week in U.S. District Court in Colorado by Steamboat Ski & Resort against Visit Salt Lake, Alta Ski Lifts Co., Brighton Resort, Solitude and Snowbird.
It accuses them of infringing on Steamboat's "well known Ski Town, U.S.A. trademarks" by using the "confusingly similar Ski City USA" trademark.
"Upon information and belief, (Visit Salt Lake) deliberately chose to use the mark SKI CITY USA in connection with its sale of Ski-Related Goods/Services in order to trade on Plaintiffs’ established goodwill in the relevant market," lawyers for Steamboat wrote in the lawsuit.
Mayor: 'Once you've stayed in Ski City, you'll never stay in a ski town'
Visit Salt Lakelaunched its much-hyped "Ski City, U.S.A." campaign to lure out-of-state tourists by showing a more youthful environment -- including commercials that show a lot of people drinking in a state known for its restrictive liquor laws.
Taking a swipe at Steamboat, Salt Lake County Mayor Ben McAdams said at the launch of the campaign: "Once you've stayed in Ski City, you'll never stay in a ski town."
