Citigroup, AT&T Agree: No Thanks to Further Litigation

Citigroup Inc. and AT&T Inc. have ended their litigation over the latter’s use of the phrase “AT&T thanks” on a customer loyalty program, which the bank said was too similar to its trademarked “thankyou.”

In a joint court filing, the companies said they dismissed their claims against each other with prejudice, meaning they could not be brought again.

Last week, a federal judge refused Citi’s request for an order barring AT&T Inc. from using the common expression for its customer loyalty program. U.S. District Judge Katherine Forrest said she did not think Citigroup’s phrase warranted trademark protection.

(Reporting by Andrew Chung and Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Andrew Hay)

Topics Lawsuits