Puma Counterfeit: One cannot copy Puma’s logo anymore; it’s 2021!
The instant case is filed by Puma Group (Plaintiff) against Ashok Kumar trading under the name of ‘The Shoes kart’ (Defendant. The defendant was fraudulently utilizing Puma’s logo, stripe logo, or any other such marks registered by the group for their brand and are essential in its identity. The Court held that ‘The Shoes kart’ shall not be allowed to sell, supply, or market any products, including footwear and accessories, bags, etc., through online or offline modes.
The plaintiff sought an injunction against the defendants to restrain them from selling counterfeited products of unsatisfactory quality to the consumers under the name of the plaintiff’s brand and logo. The plaintiff received a complaint from a Delhi-based customer regarding Puma branded shoes of poor quality that he had purchased from the defendants.
The Puma mark and the form strip logo are exclusively associated with the plaintiff’s business and brand. The company has registered the respective trademarks under Class 25 and Class 18 of the Indian trademark law and has continuously used them. The plaintiff has even obtained several trademark registrations of the trademark mentioned above in India and abroad.
Justice Jayant Nath of the Hon’ble Delhi High Court, satisfied by the arguments put forth by the plaintiff, granted an injunction against the defendant. The Court further directed ‘The Shoes Kart’ to remove all such counterfeited products from its website and any other business channels, including third-party business portals, and directed the Domain name Registry to remove the defendant’s domain name.
Author- Sania Gupta, Student at School of Law, Christ University
Disclaimer: This brief is intended to provide general guidance to the subject matter. It does not contain legal advice. For any specific advice/corrections, write to [email protected]
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