- The order was made against a case filed by Casio
- Fake Casio products were busted in Kolkata earlier this year
Due to the rampant increase in consumer complaints received by Casio regarding sale of counterfeit watches and calculators branded as Casio on Snapdeal, the Japanese multinational, Casio Computer Co., Limited initiated a legal action against the website in the District Court of Delhi. Based on the submissions advanced on behalf of Casio, the Court was pleased to grant an ad-interim ex-parte injunction Order in favour of the Casio restraining Snapdeal inter-alia from selling, displaying and advertising goods bearing the Trademarks of Casio.
Satoshi Yamazaki, general manager at Legal Department of Casio Computer Co., Ltd., said, “Casio is extremely sensitive towards protection of its Intellectual Property Rights and has been actively fighting against the counterfeiting menace in India. As a part of its anti-counterfeiting strategy and in an endeavor to ensure that its customers are not cheated with fakes, Casio has been fighting the unscrupulous traders in the local markets in India and has now extended its battle versus the fakes on the Internet.”
S.K. Bansal, advocate representing Casio, opined that, “The brand owners have to constantly confront and combat the counterfeits. The Indian judiciary has also recognized this need of the hour by fastening the liability on the anonymous entities operating behind the screens.”
Fake Casio products in Kolkatta
Casio, through a statement, had earlier informed that Kolkata Police had raided two major markets located in Kolkata (Bengal), India. Wholesalers and retailers, located Mehta Building and Burabazaar were raided by a team of police personnel. Police had raided these on 11 June 2019 and 14 June 2019 respectively.
Umesh Kumar Gupta, legal head of Casio India, said, “Brand Enforcement is been looked at very seriously by Casio. We would take this opportunity to thank Kolkata Police for their swift action. Casio will continue to take appropriate action to protect its brand image and safeguard the intellectual property associated with Casio products.”
A report by Research and Markets had earlier pointed out that the estimated losses due to counterfeiting of clothing, textile, footwear, cosmetics, handbags, and watches had amounted to 98 Billion USD. This loss had included counterfeiting from offline as well as online mediums.
Author – Mukul Yudhveer Singh. An avid reader, Mukul finds peace in books and technology. He’s as passionate about writing as he is about playing cricket and hitting the gym. If not writing or reading, you will most likely find him drawing tattoo designs or analyzing political campaigns.