TRADEMARK
DELHI HC RESTORES INJUNCTION IN FAVOR OF KRBL
KRBL a rice milling company has successfully appealed a decision
of the commercial court in the Delhi HC. The appeal challenged an
order that overturned an injunction granted to KRBL against the
respondents from using the mark "BHARAT GATE" for their
rice products. KRBL claimed that it has been using the registered
mark "INDIA GATE" for its rice products since 1993.
Further, it argued that the respondents' use of the mark
"BHARAT GATE" was deceptively similar and intended to
unfairly capitalize on KRBL's established goodwill.
The HC considering KRBL's arguments, held that the two marks
were deceptively similar and likely to create confusion among the
customers of rice and restored the overturned injunction order,
thus, preventing the respondents from using the mark "BHARAT
GATE" for their rice products or any associated products.
(1) KRBL Limited v. Praveen Kumar Buyyani & ORS; FAO (COMM) 24/2024
TRADEMARK
RAPIDO GETS RELIEF IN TRADEMARK INFRINGEMENT SUIT
Roppen Transportation Services (petitioner) popularly known as
Rapido for its bike-taxi services, has successfully defended its
trademark rights in a recent Delhi HC ruling. The petitioner had
filed a petition to rectify the registration of trademarks similar
to "RAPIDO" by Nipun Gupta (respondent). The respondent
had registered these marks in 2020 under various classes (12, 25,
39 & 42), intending to use them in the future.
The HC applied the "triple identity test", that examined
the visual, phonetic, and conceptual similarity of trademarks to
determine if the respondent's marks were infringing upon the
petitioner's trademark and found it to be so. The HC also
observed that the petitioner has been using the mark
"RAPIDO" since 2017, establishing prior use and adoption,
and based on these findings, the HC allowed the petitioner's
rectification petition.
(1) Roppen Transportation Services Pvt. Ltd. vs Mr. Nipun Gupta & Anr.; C.O. (COMM.IPD-TM 138/2024)
COPYRIGHT
GEMA SUES AI MUSIC GENERATOR FOR COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT
GEMA is a collective management organization representing the rights of composers, lyricists, and music publishers in Germany. It has filed a lawsuit against Suno an AI-generative music system that generates music based on user prompts. GEMA alleges that Suno has unlawfully used copyrighted music from its repertoire to train its AI system and that this training enables Suno to create music that strikingly resembles the melodies, harmonies, and rhythms of famous works by its member artists, constituting copyright infringement. GEMA argues that Suno is profiting from the unauthorized use of copyrighted material, without fairly compensating the artists whose works were used to train the AI.
(1) https://www.digitalmusicnews.com/2025/01/21/gema-suno-lawsuit/
GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATIONS
INDIA AIMS FOR 10,000 GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATION TAGS BY 2030
Recently, Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Mr. Piyush Goyal, announced an ambitious target of registering 10,000 Geographical Indications (GIs) tags in India by 2030. This ambitious goal comes on the heels of a significant increase in the number of authorized users of GI tags over the past decade, from a mere 365 to nearly 29,000. This initiative aligns with the government's broader efforts to strengthen India's Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) ecosystem. To effectively implement this ambitious target, a dedicated committee will be formed to oversee the process. Minister Goyal also announced several measures to streamline GI tagging, including increasing departmental manpower and implementing time-bound procedures. Furthermore, Minister Goyal emphasized the importance of various strategies to promote GI products, such as prominently listing GI tags on products and online platforms. He also stressed the crucial role of collaboration between the private and government sectors in expanding the reach of GI products and enhancing their contribution to India's trade.
PATENT
ON4OFF SUES NPCI FOR PATENT INFRINGEMENT
On4Off Trading Pvt. Ltd. (On4Off) has filed a lawsuit before the
Delhi HC against the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI),
banks, and other third-party payment service providers. On4Off
alleges that these entities are infringing its patent for
facilitating UPI transactions through credit cards.
On4Off claims to have developed this technology in 2017 and
subsequently filed for a patent in 2022, which was granted in 2023.
On4Off accuses NPCI of internalizing the patented process, using it
exclusively for RuPay credit card transactions, thereby hindering
competition from other credit card networks. Furthermore, On4Off
alleges that third-party app providers and banks are also
facilitating these transactions without authorization, gaining an
unfair advantage and seeks a permanent injunction to prevent these
entities from utilizing its patented technology. However, the HC
has referred the matter for mediation to try to resolve the dispute
through pre-litigation mediation.
PATENT
EU SEEKS CONSULTATION WITH CHINA FOR PATENT INFRINGEMENT
The European Union (EU) has intensified its legal battle with
China at the World Trade Organization (WTO). This follows an
earlier complaint filed in 2022, where the EU accused Chinese
courts of issuing "anti-suit injunctions" that unfairly
restrict European companies from seeking legal protection for their
patents in foreign courts.
In the recent action, EU alleged that Chinese courts are compelling
European companies to accept unreasonably low royalty payments for
their standard-essential patents (SEPs) without their consent.
Furthermore, they argued that Chinese courts are overstepping their
authority by setting global royalty rates for SEPs. This puts
immense pressure on European high-tech companies to accept lower
payments worldwide, impacting their revenue and
competitiveness.
POSH
UNWELCOME BEHAVIOUR AT WORKPLACE IS "SEXUAL HARASSMENT"
In a significant and important ruling, the Madras HC upheld the findings of an Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) that found an accused guilty of sexual harassment. The HC emphasized that the primary consideration in cases of sexual harassment should be the impact of the accused's actions on the victim, rather than its intentions and went on to clarify that any act or gesture, that is perceived as inappropriate or unwelcome by the victim, regardless of the accused's intent, will be considered sexual harassment. The HC quashed the order of the Principal Labour Court, which had previously overturned the ICC's decision.
(1) HCL Technologies Ltd. vs. y; W.P. No. 5643/2020
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