Founders react to Indian court ruling, renew criticism of Google's ad business

A Delhi High Court ruling on May 22 found Google liable for trademark infringement over its keyword advertising practices in a dispute with bathroom fittings maker Hindware, awarding the company ₹3 million in nominal damages. In her 163-page judgment, Justice Mini Pushkarna rejected Google’s argument that it was merely a passive intermediary.

“Google by selling the trademark of the plaintiff [Hindware] as a keyword without any authorization for commercial gains is infringing the plaintiff’s right to exclusive use of its trademark under Section 28 of the Trade Marks Act,” the judge said. The judgment drew fresh attention after Indian entrepreneurs, including Zerodha founder Nithin Kamath and Zoho founder Sridhar Vembu, publicly backed the ruling and said competitors had long used Google’s advertising tools to divert traffic and force companies to spend to protect their brands.

Kamath wrote that “whenever someone searches for ‘Zerodha,’ the traffic should rightfully come to Zerodha.

India, Delhi

google, hindware, trademark infringement, keyword advertising, delhi, nithin kamath, sridhar vembu, zerodha, nominal damages, section 28