SportsLine USA Inc., publisher of the CBS SportsLine Web site has settled a
trademark lawsuit with weather and sports information provider Weatherline Inc.
Weatherline, a provider of on-demand weather and sports, sued CBS
SportsLine in 1997, challenging its right to use the name on its sports Web
site. Weatherline was granted the rights to the SportsLine mark in the
1970s for its telephone-based sports information service.
The agreement announced Friday, gives CBS SportsLine the right to continue
using the name in return for a payment of about $1.1 million to
Weatherline. CBS SportsLine said it will record a one-time charge in its
third-quarter to pay for the settlement.
Michael Levy, president and chief executive officer of SportsLine USA,
reaffirmed his company’s position that Weatherline’s trademark did not
extend to the Internet. However, he said a settlement was in both
companies’ best interest.
“We are confident we would have prevailed on the merits of the lawsuit. But
there is always uncertainty involved in litigation and we are happy to put
this issue behind us and focus our resources on continuing to build our
brand,” Levy said.
SportsLine expects insurance payments will offset a portion of the
settlement costs.
