Choice Hotels International granted injunction for well-known trademark COMFORT INN

Recently, the Delhi High Court passed an order in Choice Hotels International Inc. v. M/s Hotel Comforts Inn wherein it issued an ex-parte ad-interim injunction in favor of the plaintiff. In a rather severe judgment, the court directed the defendants to cease all usage of the trademark/trade name ‘HOTEL COMFORT INN,’ including any mark that is identical/deceptively similar to the plaintiff’s ‘COMFORT’ formative trademark.

The plaintiff stems back its incorporation to 1939 in the USA, after which the mark COMFORT was adopted in 1981 and used continuously concerning hotels. The plaintiff has held proprietorship over the said mark COMFORT INN since 1985 in the USA & 1986 in India under Class 16. The plaintiff claimed that they had been using the said mark since 1991 and have a registered domain name, www.comfortinn.com, since 1996. The plaintiff contended that the said mark was declared a well-known mark in the case of CS(COMM) 560/2017.

They claimed to have been apprised of the defendant’s misuse of their family mark COMFORT around April 2021 as part of their Trade name, i.e., ‘HOTELS COMFORT INN.’ Further, the defendant had listings on third-party websites and submitted proof of the same via photographs.

The court was of the view that the defendant was prima facie in breach of common law rights of the plaintiff, and the impugned mark of the defendant was found identical to the plaintiff’s mark. 

Also read: Cross Fit secures injunction over well-known mark ‘Cross Fit’

The matter has not been decided in its entirety, and further hearings are scheduled. The case highlights that protecting the well-known trademark status is above the general protection given by Trademark law. One of the striking features of this order is how the court restrained the use of any identical/similar mark to that of the plaintiff on social media. A youth-oriented market drives today’s brand recognition, and the internet can result in overnight fame and reputation. Restraining the use of social media is essential in protecting the goodwill of a well-known mark. 

Reference: Choice Hotels International  INC v/s M S Hotel Comfort INN CS(COMM) 417/2021

Author: Rakshita Singh, student at Army Law College, Pune

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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