NY probes rights sold to 'World Trade Center'

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York is expanding its probe nationwide into the 1980s sale of the rights to the name "World Trade Center" to a nonprofit for $10, resulting in millions of dollars in fees for use of the name in 28 states, according to an official familiar with the investigation.

The official told The Associated Press that letters seeking information on the deals should arrive Monday at 45 World Trade Center complexes, from Alaska to Florida. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because the official wasn't authorized to speak publicly about the probe.

New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman is investigating a 1986 deal in which the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey sold the naming rights to one of its outgoing executives for use by a nonprofit organization called The World Trade Centers Association. The Port Authority owns the World Trade Center site but is among hundreds of entities worldwide that pay to use the "World Trade Center" name.

"The attorney general is looking to find out how the WTCA got such a sweetheart deal on the naming rights, how much revenue the WTCA makes selling the name and how that price is set," the official said.

http://bigstory.ap.org/article/ny-probes-rights-sold-world-trade-center