NEW YORK (AP) — Macy’s has filed a lawsuit against the company that owns the giant billboard next to its flagship Manhattan store, fighting to prevent Amazon from taking over the advertising space that carried Macy’s name for almost 60 years. The department store retailer says there has been a restrictive covenant in place since 1963 barring the billboard space from being used by any Macy’s competitor. But Macy’s says that when it tried to negotiate a lease renewal this year, the billboard’s owners, the Kaufman Organization told them they were in discussions with a “prominent online retailer,” and there was “little doubt” that meant Amazon, according to the lawsuit. Messages were left with the Kaufman Organization. Amazon had no comment.
Photo: FILE – This photo from Friday, Nov. 15, 2013, file photo, shows a traffic officer directing traffic next to Macy’s flagship department store and its giant billboard in Herald Square in New York. Macy’s has filed a lawsuit against the company that owns the billboard, fighting to prevent Amazon from taking over the advertising space that carried Macy’s name for almost 60 years. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews, File)
