Kia Ora: Air New Zealand faces boycott over trademark bid

Air New Zealand's bid to trademark the image of the words "Kia Ora," the title of its in-flight magazine, has prompted threats of a boycott. The phrase kia ora is a Maori greeting and the trademark attempt has sparked anger from the indigenous community. "My warning to Air New Zealand is I sure as hell will put a stop to this," head of the council Matthew Tukaki said. Air New Zealand is no stranger to controversies involving the Maori community, which make up about 15% of the country's population. In a statement to the BBC, Air New Zealand said it had "Great respect" for the Maori language and that the trademark application only referred to the airline's in-flight magazine title.

Read the full story

 Related companies

Make a complaint about Kia by viewing their customer service contacts.

•