09 April 2024 Intellectual Property Rights >> Intellectual Property Rights  

Domino's Pizza is taking legal action against eight companies in India, accusing them of trademark infringement and attempting to pass off their products as Domino's. The lawsuit centers around the use of deceptively similar names like "Domino," "Dominon," and "Dominox" for online pizza delivery.

According to Domino's, these companies are deliberately misleading customers by using names that closely resemble their registered trademarks "Domino's" and "Domino's Pizza." The lawsuit claims this not only creates confusion but also damages Domino's brand reputation.

Domino's alleges that these lookalike brands operate physical stores under different names to avoid detection. However, they suspect a unified operation behind these companies due to shared FSSAI numbers and some registering under Zomato's "MULTI BRAND KITCHEN" feature.

The lawsuit highlights customer complaints of confusion, with over 500 customers in the National Capital Region (NCR) reporting being misled into believing they were ordering from Domino's. These customers reportedly received pizzas of poor quality, further tarnishing Domino's brand image.

Domino's is seeking an injunction to prevent the defendants from using these similar trademarks and to have their listings removed from online food ordering platforms like Zomato and Swiggy.

The court has issued a temporary injunction in favor of Domino's, barring the defendants from using the lookalike names and requiring the online platforms to delist them until the next hearing.

The case is set to be heard on September 11th, 2024. This lawsuit highlights the challenges faced by established brands in protecting their intellectual property in the online marketplace.

  Intellectual Property Rights (Imported Goods) Enforcement Rules, 2007