Delhi High Court Has Passed a landmark judgement in a case that included Google and a sanitaryware brand Hindware, and this could completely change how companies advertise online in the country. Until now, and for a very long time, businesses across sectors have relied on a common digital marketing strategy bidding on rival brand names as keywords on Google Ads to attract potential customers. For example, someone searching for one brand could also end up seeing ads from its rivals.
Now, according to the latest court ruling, the practice may face legal scrutiny. The Delhi High Court has stated that Google cannot allow rival firms to bid on trademarked keywords ‘Hindware’ via its advertising platform. The judgment came on a trademark dispute filed by HSIL Limited, the parent company of Hindware.
The court found out that letting competitors use a trademarked name as a keyword to initiate ads comes under trademark infringement. As for the case, it began when Hindware argued that rival companies are using its registered trademark on Google Ads to divert customers searching particularly for Hindware products.
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In this case, the court has also rejected Google’s defence that it was only acting as an intermediary. On the contrary, the judgment said Google played an active commercial role by selling keywords, conducting ad auctions and earning revenue from these searches.
Impact Of the Decision On Online Advertising
For those unaware, competitor keyword bidding is heavily used in industries like fintech, ecommerce, food delivery, and travel. As per legal experts, the ruling suggests that courts may now take a tougher approach towards digital advertising practices that in any way include trademarks. A lot of companies have made their business on keyword bidding to capture the masses rapidly. And if trademark owners increasingly challenge such practices, then the legal risks around the same could also rise in no time.
