Delhi High Court rules in favor of HT Media

Delhi High Court rules in favor of HT Media

The suit pertained to infringement of the trademark rights

The Delhi High Court has passed an ad-interim order in favor of HT Media. It has restrained the impugned defendants from infringing HT Media's Intellectual Property rights in relation to the trademarks Hindustan Times and the Hindi logo Hindustan.

The court has also passed directions to the Internet Service Providers for blocking www.hindustantimesmarathi.com, the domain name/website of the defendants.

Recently, HT Media and Hindustan Media Ventures Limited had filed a commercial suit before the High Court seeking a permanent injunction and damages for infringement and illegal and unauthorized adoption of the plaintiff's trademarks and copyright vested in the Hindi logo 'Hindustan'.

It complained that the registrants/owners/developers of the domain name www.hindustantimesmarathi.com had knowingly been attempting to lure the existing and potential customers of HT Media by creating confusion in their minds. This pertained particularly to those well-versed in Marathi, as the defendant's domain name depicted the manner and style that was absolutely similar to the logo of the plaintiff.

Furthermore, the defendants had also been publishing articles in Marathi akin to the HT Media's website www.marathi.hindustantimes.com.

The Hindustan Times, the flagship publication of HT Media, was founded in 1924. and emerges as a natural choice For around 8 million readers, it has been a natural choice for following national and international news. It is also a platform for information, analysis, and entertainment stories.

Similarly, Hindustan, the Hindi daily of Hindustan Media Ventures also traces its origin to the 1930s. For almost a century, the newspapers have established their presence as newspapers with editorial excellence, innovation, and integrity.

Both HT Media Ltd and Hindustan Media Ventures were represented in the court by law firm Saikrishna & Associates.