• The Wall Street Journal , Friday, August 8, 2008 10:45 AM

A rider on the new Dubai subway system might someday be getting off at, say, the Citibank stop on the Nike line. Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority is offering naming rights for 23 of the planned 47 metro stops, as well as for the two metro lines themselves.

In addition to appearing on identification signs inside and outside stations, names of the winning corporate bidders will appear on subway-system maps. Winning companies also will have the right of first refusal on traditional advertising displayed at their stations. If Coca-Cola were to win a station's name, for example, it could block Pepsi ads from appearing at that station.

City officials say 250 companies expressed interest in the concept after it was announced in April, although the number of official bids received before the June deadline has not been disclosed. The authority says it will take into account the cultural values of the United Arab Emirates, of which Dubai is a part, in considering bidders for subway naming rights. Notwithstanding Dubai's more tolerant lifestyle than those of other Persian Gulf societies, Victoria's Secret and Anheuser-Busch probably need not apply.

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