American Airline sues parent of Kayak.com and Sidestep.com

Fort Worth-based American Airlines is suing the parent of meta-search sites Kayak.com and Sidestep.com, saying the Web sites violated its agreement to use the airline's airfare content.

At issue is whether the sites were allowed to display American fares through third-party sites, including orbtiz.com and cheaptickets.com -- where the carrier must pay booking fees -- rather than just on www.aa.com.

American issued the following statement Wednesday:

"American has filed a formal complaint in response to Kayak's breach of a longstanding contract between the two companies. American believes that it is the owner of its fares, flight schedules, seat inventory, and trademarks. Intellectual property ownership underlies American's ability to structure where, how, and under which economic terms its products may be displayed and sold."

A spokeswoman for Kayak said late Wednesday that she could not comment on the case.

Kayak issued a statement last week saying that it terminated its agreement with American.

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