Sound Board

Our thoughts and views on the practice of Intellectual Property in India and around the world.

The recent domain dispute involving jiohotstar.com has sparked a broader online discussion, highlighting a familiar narrative of “big corporation versus individual.” While some recognized the legal underpinnings of the issue, much of the debate centred on the perception that Reliance Jio should have accommodated the individual’s request. However, this situation exemplifies domain squatting—where individuals/company register internet domains containing well-known brand names or company…

As the digital landscape evolves, the need to hold intermediaries to higher standards of accountability and duty of care has become increasingly pressing. This necessity arises from a growing trend in which intermediaries often overlook instances of infringement occurring on their platforms, to the detriment of the rights owners. With the rapid expansion of online services, intermediaries play a pivotal role and so, it is essential to implement stricter standards and practices that compel them…

The Delhi High Court’s ruling in the case of Adobe Inc. v. Namase Patel and Ors. serves as a reminder of the importance of protecting trademarks and intellectual property rights on the internet. In this case, the court granted a permanent injunction in favour of the Plaintiff. The Court recognised Namase Patel as a habitual cyber squatter and awarded a sum of INR 2,00,01,000/- (approx. US$ 242,000) in damages against the defendant to act as a deterrent against such actions in the future. 

The Supreme Court indicated that it was proposing to lift the suo moto extension of the limitation period granted by it on account of the COVID-19 pandemic, with effect from March 15 this year. Following this, on 8th March 2021, the Court passed an order ending the extension of the limitation period.

More often than not, when a “bona fide” proprietor of the trademark (I use the term “bona fide” rather loosely here) finds unauthorized use of their mark by a third party, the first step taken (often) is to send the other party a legal notice. While some legal notices sent/received are convoluted and packed with legal jargon, some are brief and get the message across. A legal notice simply outlines the rights of the sender (“bona fide” proprietor) and cautions the infringing party to refrain…

The National Internet Exchange of India (NIXI) has notified certain changes to the INDRP Rules of Procedure. The new policy is aimed at streamlining the INDRP process, making it easier for rights holders to protect and enforce their rights against unauthorized registration of .in domains or .in domain squatting.

The current case is a classic story of conscious copying of the domain name. Before proceeding further, dealing with the meaning and definition of the word domain name is important. Domain name is the name of the website. In simple words, just like how every person is attributed with a specific and unique name, similarly, the websites too have a name of their own! And this ‘name’ is called as the Domain Name.

In a case of fraud, the High Court of Delhi has recently cracked down on unidentified persons who solicited money deposits in the garb of job interviews for a position in Colgate Palmolive Company. In two orders dated 12 April and 15 May, 2019, the High Court of Delhi has ordered an ex parte ad interim injunction against unnamed defendants, after Colgate Palmolive filed a suit.

Domain names play a vital role in business as it has been used by the common public to identify the business. A dispute in relation to the domain name arises when any party registers an earlier trademark as their domain name. It is necessary that the trademark of the complainant must be identical or confusingly similar to the second level domain of the disputed domain name. This requirement rules out complaints raised by an owner of the unregistered trademark. Domain names can also be…

As we all know, advocates and solicitors ought to obtain a power of attorney from their clients including non-resident clients, in order to facilitate the Advocate’s firm or Solicitor’s firm to act in its professional capacity for the client. Many a time, besides acting as Constituted Attorneys i.e. power of attorney holders, advocates also act as the advocates on record.