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IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI
Amit Bansal, J.
Infiniti Retail Limited – Appellant
Versus
Croma Through Its Proprietor & Ors. – Respondents
CS(COMM) 71 of 2022, I.A. 1538 of 2022 (O-XXXIX R-1 & 2 of CPC), I.A. 1543 of 2022 (u of s 12A Commercial Courts Act), I.A. 10960 of 2022 (for condonation of delay of 75 days in filing Rejoinder to Reply filed by D-5)
Decided On : 12-05-2023
TRADEMARK - Infringement of 'CROMA' trademark - [Trade Marks Act, 1999, Section 2(1)(zg), Section 29, Section 134] - The court found that the plaintiff, as the registered proprietor of the well-known trademark 'CROMA', was entitled to a decree of permanent injunction against the defendant for infringement of the trademark. The court also directed the transfer of the impugned domain name 'www.croma.in' to the plaintiff.
Fact of the Case:
The plaintiff, Infiniti Retail Limited, sought permanent injunction against the defendant for infringing the 'CROMA' trademark and passing off. The defendant had registered the domain name 'www.croma.in' containing the plaintiff's well-known trademark.
Finding of the Court:
The court found that the plaintiff had established its rights as the registered proprietor of the 'CROMA' trademark and proved the defendant's infringement and passing off. The defendant's failure to file a written statement and the deemed admission of documents supported the plaintiff's case.
Issues: Infringement of 'CROMA' trademark, passing off, and transfer of domain name 'www.croma.in'
Ratio Decidendi: The plaintiff's established rights as the registered proprietor of the 'CROMA' trademark, the defendant's infringement and passing off, and the applicability of summary judgment under Order XIII-A of the CPC.
Final Decision: The court decreed the suit in favor of the plaintiff, granting permanent injunction and directing the transfer of the impugned domain name 'www.croma.in' to the plaintiff.
JUDGMENT
Amit Bansal, J. (Oral)
CS(COMM) 71/2022 and I.A. 7346/2023 (O-XIII A of the CPC seeking summary judgment)
1. The present suit has been filed seeking the relief of permanent injunction restraining the defendant from infringing the trademark of the plaintiff, passing off and other ancillary reliefs.
BRIEF FACTS
2. Briefly the case set up by the plaintiff is as under:
2.1. The plaintiff, Infiniti Retail Limited is a part of TATA Group. It owns and manages a national chain of retail shops offering a wide range of electronics, consumer products, household appliances and allied goods which include televisions, home appliances, kitchen appliances, phones, computers, audio and video products, camera, grooming and wellness products, gaming products, accessories etc., under the mark "CROMA".
2.2. The plaintiff operates through more than 225 physical stores since 2006 and also through its website www.croma.com, registered in 1996. The plaintiff employs approximately 13,000 people.
2.3. The plaintiff spent approximately Rs.35 lakhs in conceptualising the mark "CROMA" for its business. Thereafter, approximately Rs.60 lakhs were spent in designing and adopting a "CROMA" sub brands and nearly Rs.20 lakhs were spent on designing and conceiving new logos for the "CROMA" brand.
2.4. The plaintiff is the registered proprietor of the mark "CROMA" and "CROMA" formative marks in Classes 9, 11 and 35 in relation to wide range of goods and services, details of which are given in paragraph (s) of the application.
2.5. The mark "CROMA" has been declared to be a `well-known trademark' by the Registrar of Trade Marks vide notification dated 24th February, 2020.
2.6. The well-known mark "CROMA" is the sole component of the plaintiff's website and forms a significant part of the business done by the plaintiff under the mark "CROMA".
2.7. The plaintiff has also given details of the revenue earned by sale of products through the plaintiff's services under the mark "CROMA". The net revenue generated in the year 2007 was around Rs.30 crores whereas the revenue generated in the financial year 2018 was around Rs.3534 crores.
The plaintiff has also given details of marketing and promotional expenses incurred in respect of its business under the "CROMA" trademark/name. The promotional expenses incurred by the plaintiff in the year 2010 were around Rs.25 cores whereas the promotional expenses incurred in the year 2021 were around Rs.66 crores. The plaintiff has also promoted its goods and services under the mark "CROMA" on its social media platform such as website is completely hidden.
Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram and has garnered almost 4,06,681 followers across all such platforms.
2.8. Owing to the long and continuous use of the well-known trademark "CROMA", the plaintiff has acquired immense goodwill and reputation.
2.9. In January 2022, the plaintiff was made aware of the registration of the domain name www.croma.in (hereinafter `impugned website') containing plaintiff's registered and well-known trademark "CROMA" by a third party. The said website was being squatted on by an unrelated third party who has been earning revenues through targeted geo-located advertisements provided by a separate service. The said website was also being offered for sale for an amount of USD 3500.
2.10. The defendant no.1 is the owner of the impugned website. The defendant no. 2 is the Domain Name Registrar of the impugned website. The `WhoIs' database reveals that the identity of the registrant of the impugned
2.11. The unauthorised and illegal use of the plaintiff's well-known trademark "CROMA" infringes the trademark of the plaintiff.
2.12. Accordingly, the present suit was filed.
PROCEEDINGS IN THE SUIT
3. This Court vide order dated 28th January, 2022 granted ex parte ad (error during validation) Signed by AMIT BANSAL Time: 2023.05.15 19:52:30 +05'30' Reason: Location: interim injunction in favour of the plaintiff under I.A.1538/2022 restraining the defendant
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