In the case of Modern Mold Plast Pvt. Ltd. & Anr. (“Modern Mold Plast “) v. Flipkart Internet Pvt. Ltd. & Ors., the Delhi High Court addressed the issue of unauthorized sellers latching on to the listings of trademark owners on eCommerce platforms.
Modern Mold Plast, the Plaintiffs, are the manufacturers and sellers of products under various “MAHARAJA” trademarks, including “MODERN MAHARAJA,” “MUKUT MAHARAJA,” “METRO MAHARAJA,” and “OMAHARAJA”. The Plaintiffs filed the suit seeking a permanent and mandatory injunction against Flipkart and two other sellers (defendant nos. 2 and 3), for passing off of their trademarks and infringement of their copyrights.
Modern Mold Plast claimed that third-party sellers, AKS Trading (defendant no. 2) and NS Marketing (defendant no. 3), had latched onto their listings on Flipkart and sold their own products as if they originated from Modern Mold Plast. The Plaintiffs submitted evidence showing that the Defendants were even issuing invoices under the “MAHARAJA” trademark. Modern Mold Plast further submitted that the said practice misled consumers and amounted to passing off, as the third-party sellers used the plaintiffs’ trademarks without authorization.
After reviewing the facts, the court observed that the plaintiffs were the prior users of the “MAHARAJA” trademarks, and that their common law rights had been recognized in previous litigation. The court found that the practice of latching on, whereby unauthorized sellers sold products under the plaintiffs’ listings, amounted to passing off. Consequently, the court held that such practices were impermissible, and directed Flipkart to implement its “brand gating” feature to prevent unauthorized sellers from latching on to the plaintiffs’ listings. The plaintiffs expressed satisfaction with the court’s directions and chose not to press for any additional relief.
The suit was disposed of with the court’s instructions for Flipkart to ensure that only authorized sellers must be permitted to sell products under the plaintiffs’ listings and to disable the latching-on feature when notified.
Citation: Modern Mold Plast Pvt. Ltd. & Anr. v. Flipkart Internet Pvt. Ltd. & Ors., CS(COMM) 803/2024 (H.C. Delhi Sept. 18, 2024). Available at: http://indiankanoon.org/doc/133917609/, Visited on: 24/09/2024.
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