Exclusive : EasyJet may have to change their name.

I have discovered some information that sounds quite interesting through my travel and tourism updates which I receive weekly.

It turns out that Stelios who setup EasyJet may have to change the name and re-brand the easyjet airline business because the original owner wants the name back.

Stelios does not own the name EasyJet and infact pays the original owner £1 million per year just to use the name.

Now the original owner of the easyjet name wants to use the name 'EasyJet' for his online travel business and may not renew the contract already in place when it runs out. Stelios will have little option but to re-brand, or re-negotiate which doesn't look that positive.

I think that the owner of the name will use the reputation of easyjet and all that is associated with it to make a small fortune, and could make a lot more money than what the name brings in already.

So keep hold of your easyjet goodies, because the brand will be a travel agent in years to come!

You heard it here first!

Alex

And all the other companies?? easyrentacar, easycruise, easyrider (ok i made the last one up)

I think that 'Easy' is registered to Stelios and anything else like easycar and easyhotel etc etc " BUT "easyJet" is not his, and the owner wants it back!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Alex Jay

" BUT "easyJet" is not his, and the owner wants it back!

---

Are you sure this is not a corrupted version of the story "UK airline Easyjet has lost a case before the Arbitration and Mediation Centre of the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) in which it attempted to recover the name easy-jet.com from a man who claimed to be a seller of ink jet printer cartridges."?

See http://www.out-law.com/page-945 .

I know that's an old story, but it seems similar. And it really hard to believe that someone so astute would build a whole successful business on a rented name.

Regards
Pete

Ok, here's the original article from my travel and tourism news board!

Easyjet in danger of losing name
This week sees the start of a High Court battle between Easyjet senior management and the airline’s founder Stelio Haji-Ioannou over ancillary revenue limits.

Sir Stelios, who owns 38% of Easyjet’s shares, resigned from the board last month and has registered his distaste for outgoing chief executive Andy Harrison as well as the board’s desire to spend money on aircraft instead of giving shareholders a dividend.

He believes the airline is now receiving more than a quarter of income from ancillary areas which falls foul of an agreement drawn up between the two parties. The two sides will battle it out on Thursday in court.

In an interesting twist, this weekend it emerged that the entrepreneur now wants to set up an online travel agency using the Easyjet name.

Currently he licenses the name to the airline for £1 a year. A worse-case scenario for Easyjet is that it would have to rebrand.
by Dinah Hatch

Ok, I read it wrong :) , I'm thinking Stelios owns the name and leases it to easyjet.....and easyjet officials will have to re-brand.

OOOPS!

Alex

If it were me.... Oh the easylife..

I wouldn't fuss to much.. People will remember the well torture you put them through with having delayed/cancelled flights and all the added hassle that comes with in order to satisfy your need to get more money which I'm thinking the fellow that owns the name is after. The thought of doing the work required to set up a travel website is a great one but the name really doesn't make a hill of beans as a name unless it's new and fresh as his idea could be. Using a name already being used by an airline won't get people using your service only being frustrated finding out it's not 'easy-jet' the airline but 'easy-jet' the booking website. Which then brings out the frustration.

You are making a million pounds a year for a 'NAME' that's like winning the lottery every year the airline is still in business. I would count that as a huge blessing commend the airline for taking your name and making you money with it and move along..

Ron