Fletcher YoderDefendant’s use of plaintiff’s “Reno Air Races” and “pylon logo” marks on merchandise defendant sells at racing events has caused, and is likely to continue to cause, consumer confusion, since plaintiff’s marks are strong, and since plaintiff and defendant sell substantially similar merchandise bearing identical or substantially similar marks in extremely close proximity.
Plaintiff, in action alleging that defendant Internet service providers infringe its “Playboy” and “Playmate” trademarks by using “playboy” and “playmate” as “keyword” search terms that trigger appearance of “banner advertisements” on user’s computer screen, may be able to show “initial interest” confusion, since some consumers seeking plaintiff’s Web sites may initially believe that unlabeled banner advertisements are links to plaintiff’s sites or to sites affiliated with plaintiff.