Last week, Google received a setback from the Delhi High Court when the latter ruled in favour of Hindware in the trademark dispute case. The court verdict was seen as having larger implications for the online advertising industry, where brands have been using keywords of rival companies to rank better in search results.
The company has now reacted to the development and said its approach is in sync with Indian trademark legislation.
A Google spokesperson was quoted as saying in media reports that the company bars competitor advertisers from using trademarked words in ad-text of an ad, and this is a policy that is applied worldwide, including India.
“We duly respect and operate in accordance with all local laws, and in instances where the orders are overbroad or inconsistent with our policies, we work to explain our position as per the legal process in the country,” the Google spokesperson reportedly said.
“Specifically on our Ads policy on trademark keywords, we have a clear and stated policy that does not allow competitor advertisers to use trademarked terms in the ad-text of an ad. This policy is consistently applied globally and is in accordance with the Indian trademark law,” the spokesperson added.
Earlier, the Delhi High Court had held Google responsible for allowing the use of the trademark ‘HINDWARE’ as a keyword in ads by rival brands. The court also imposed a cost of Rs 30 lakh on Google, to be awarded to Hindware, a popular sanitary brand.
Hindware had alleged in 2013 and 2014 that competing sanitary brands had run their online advertising campaigns on Google Ads using the keyword ‘HINDWARE’ and related combinations without any authorisation. This practice allowed sponsored links of competing brands to appear in search results when any user searched for the brand Hindware.