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Noting that if an ad-interim ex-parte injunction is not granted to the plaintiff since the defendant's marks appear to be deceptively similar, the plaintiff will suffer grave irreparable harm, the Single-Judge Bench restrained 'Voice of MIthila' from using 'The Voice' mark.
Justice Navin Chawla of the Delhi High Court, recently granted an ex-parte injunction in favor of the ITV Studios Netherland's mark 'The Voice', a musical competition series, restraining Bhojpuri Social Media account on Instagram and Facebook as 'Voice of Mithila' from using a deceptively similar mark.
Noting that the plaintiff has claimed that its mark ‘The Voice’ has a worldwide reputation, and any adoption by the defendant is likely to dilute that mark's identity, Justice Chawla stated that the balance of convenience also favors the plaintiff over the defendant, since the plaintiff claims that the defendant is a new entrant, claiming in use only since 2020.
The Court was hearing a trademark infringement suit filed by ITV Studios a renowned entertainment content producer running/organizing established talent shows under the mark ‘The Voice’ registered since 2015.
Counsel for ITV Studios contended that the defendant's primary business is creating and uploading video content to the internet and adoption of a similar mark, would not only infringe the plaintiff's right but would also result in passing off and dilution of the plaintiff's mark. It claims that its program/show ‘The Voice’ has been broadcasted in India since 2010 and was most recently broadcast on Star Channel in February of 2019.
Justice Chawla noted that ITV Studios had established a strong prima facie case for the issuance of an ad-interim ex-parte injunction and opined that if an ad-interim ex-parte injunction is not granted since the defendant's marks appear to be deceptively similar to the plaintiff's, the plaintiff will suffer grave irreparable harm.
Accordingly, the single-judge bench ordered, “An ad-interim ex-parte injunction in favor of the plaintiff and against the defendant is passed in terms of prayers (a) to (c) in the application, till further orders”, and issued notice to the defendant and listed the matter for consideration on December 16, 2022, before the Join Registrar.
Case Title: ITV Studios Netherlands Content BV v. Voice of Mithila
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