Skip to main content

With the Delhi High Court stressing in the interim that use of trademarked words for bidding in the Google ad programme could amount to trademark infringement, The Economic Times approached Safir Anand for his opinion on what the judgement means.

“Indian courts have taken a different stand for the protection of ‘trademark owners’. Over the last three cases (for MakeMyTrip, UdChalo and DRS Logistics), the courts have prohibited the unauthorised users from bidding for the trademarks of other entities as that would amount to violation of the rights of the trademark owner. This puts a lot of onus on search engines to ascertain that the keyword chosen by the advertiser is not trademarked and, even if it is, the same has been licensed or assigned or subjected to consented use,” Safir tells ET.

“Certainly, the view adopted by Indian courts puts a greater burden on the search engines and therefore has more impact on their ad business as compared to Europe. However, the stand will become clearer as the judicial approach on the topic matures and becomes clearer,” he adds.

Read the article here: https://lnkd.in/dUGxZU7R

Most Recent

News & Insights

VIEW ALL
Thought Leadership
Oct 16, 2025

‘First published on Lexology’ By: Safir Anand and Omesh Puri The Office of the Controller General of Patents, Designs, and Trade Marks has issued a

Indian Trade Marks Office issues Office Order – Streamlining Registry Function
News & Updates
Oct 16, 2025

Being a part of the International Trademarks Association (INTA) is always a delight. Here’s how Anand and Anand would be joining forces with INTA on

Team Anand and Anand for INTA
Thought Leadership
Oct 14, 2025

‘First published on Lexology’ By: Safir Anand and Arpita Mukherjee When WeWork faced turmoil globally, leading its U.S. parent company to file for

WeWork India’s NSE Listing: A Lesson in Local Execution Within Global Brands
Thought Leadership
Oct 02, 2025

‘First published on India Business Law Journal’ By: Pravin Anand and Dr. Ajai Garg The fourth industrial revolution, driven by artificial intelligence

Independent AI key to India’s global power