JUDGMENT :

M.M.SUNDRESH , J .

PREFACE:

1.1. Internet has created a new class of literates. Anyone who uses internet sparingly, knows nothing about it, despite formal education becomes a semi illiterate or literate. World over, there is a rapid escalation of internet users with a particular reference to our country. It has indeed become inseparable in the lives of the people as one of absolute necessity.

1.2. An information has to be obtained by crawling. The web is like an exhaustive library. To get an information, a software known as 'web crawler' is used to discover the webpages.

1.3. 'Google' has earned a reputation of one of the best search engines worldwide facilitating a primary platform for the advertisement of goods and services. It has not only started its advertisement business but also 'Ad Words' programe.

1.4. The functioning of an AdWord Programme and the key words are best expressed through the words of google itself.

“(iv) The AdWords program allows an advertiser to create and run these advertisements through a simple process. A advertiser, using the AdWords program creates a sponsored link, will specify the headline, the address of the web page to which the headline links, and the advertising text, within certain limits set by Google.

(v)”Keywords” are those words, phrases, sentences, etc., that might trigger certain sponsored results or advertisements, if they correspond to certain terms selected by the advertiser to trigger an Advertisement. The terms or expressions selected by an advertiser trigger advertisements are known as “Keywords”. For example, a “search term” could be “Trains from Muymbai to New Delhi” which is typed by the user on the Google Website in the search query box. The advertiser can select the Keywords “Mumbai Delhi Trains” which is based on the search terms and for which the advertiser would like his advertisement to be shown. It is submitted that the Plaintiff has used the expressions 'AdWords' and 'Keywords' interchangeably. To summarise, it is respectfully submitted that the term 'AdWords' is the name of the advertising program provided and managed by Defendant No.5 and that the expression 'Keywords' refers to the terms or phrases used at the backend as a trigger to display ads that meet the specific criteria for the display of an ad in response to a search query entered by a user. These are therefore distinct terms and cannot be used interchangeably.”

1.5. The following is the working mechanism.

“(ii) It is important to appreciate that when a user enters a search query (search terms) for searching particular information on the Google Website, the Google Website conducts a search of the existing material available on the third party websites as indexed by (which predominantly relate to data and content hosted by third parties on their websites) in an automated manner through its search algorithm and displays the links to the websites and other information of such search that correspond to the query entered by the user. The results that are generated are referred to as “Organic Results” or “Natural results”. The order in which the natural or organic results are ranked and indexed are based on multiple factors, chief amongst them being relevance of the respective websites to the search term entered by the Internet user. The search engine operator does not claim any remuneration for displaying those results.”.....................

(iii) When such search results are displayed on a page, certain advertisements also appear at the top or bottom of the page (previously they also appeared on the right hand side of the search page), clearly distinguished from the search results by various indicators that included a line along with a label “Sponsored Links” or 'Ads' in a yellow or green background. Currently all advertisements are distinguished by a yellow or green coloured label with the word 'Ad' displayed