Bombay High Court Recognises Right to Sue Against AI-Generated Content in personality rights case filed by Preity Zinta
In a significant development for personality rights jurisprudence in India, the Bombay High Court has held that actor Preity Zinta can pursue legal remedies against the unauthorised use of AI-generated content depicting her likeness. The Court’s observations reinforce the growing recognition that artificial intelligence-generated images and videos may infringe an individual’s personality and publicity rights where they falsely portray or commercially exploit a person’s identity without consent.
Bombay High Court Cancels ‘DUPHACHRIT’ Trademark for Being Deceptively Similar to Abbott’s ‘DUPHA’ Family of Marks
In a significant ruling reinforcing the heightened standard of protection afforded to pharmaceutical trademarks, the Bombay High Court directed the removal of the trademark “DUPHACHRIT” from the Register of Trademarks after holding that it was deceptively similar to Abbott Product Operations AG’s well-known family of “DUPHA” trademarks, including Duphaston and Duphalac. The Court allowed Abbott’s rectification petition and ordered cancellation of the impugned mark. Abbott demonstrated that it has been using the “DUPHA” formative marks for pharmaceutical products in India for several decades, with registrations dating back to 1951. The Court observed that the dominant and essential feature of the impugned mark was the prefix “DUPHA”, which had acquired considerable goodwill and distinctiveness through long, continuous and extensive use by Abbott.
Delhi High Court Cancels ‘D-TAN’ Trademark, Holds It to Be Descriptive and Non-Distinctive
In a significant decision on the registrability of descriptive trademarks, the Delhi High Court directed the cancellation of the registered trademark “D-TAN” held by Visage Beauty and Health Care Pvt. Ltd., holding that the mark merely describes the intended purpose of skincare products used for tan removal and lacks the distinctiveness required for trademark protection under the Trade Marks Act, 1999. The Court allowed a rectification petition filed by Honasa Consumer Limited, the parent company of Mamaearth and Aqualogica, and directed the Registrar of Trademarks to remove the mark from the Register within four weeks.
Delhi High Court Holds Google Not Obligated to Proactively Monitor Trademark Misuse in Advertisements
In a significant ruling concerning trademark enforcement in online advertising, the Delhi High Court dismissed a contempt petition filed by DRS Logistics Pvt. Ltd. against Google, holding that Google was not in wilful disobedience of earlier judicial directions relating to the use of DRS Logistics’ trademarks in Google Ads. The Court clarified that the earlier orders did not impose a continuing obligation upon Google to proactively monitor or police every advertisement published on its platform for potential trademark infringement.
Anthropic Faces Fresh Copyright Litigation from Over 100 Authors
Artificial intelligence company Anthropic has been sued by more than 100 authors who allege that the company used pirated copies of their books to train its large language models without authorisation. The lawsuit adds to a growing number of global copyright disputes concerning whether copyrighted literary works may lawfully be used as AI training data. The outcome of these proceedings is likely to have significant implications for AI developers, publishers and copyright owners, particularly as jurisdictions continue to grapple with balancing innovation and intellectual property protection.
PPL India Officially Registered as Copyright Society
The Central Government has granted registration to Phonographic Performance Limited (PPL India) as a copyright society under the Copyright Act, 1957. The registration enables PPL India to license the public performance and communication of sound recordings on behalf of its member record labels. PPL India had previously operated as a copyright society before its registration lapsed in 2014. Its re-registration marks an important development for India’s music licensing ecosystem by restoring a recognised collective management organisation for sound recording rights.
Bombay High Court Upholds Territorial Restrictions on Use of ‘The New Indian Express’ Trademark
In a significant judgment on territorial trademark rights and permitted use, the Bombay High Court upheld an interim injunction restraining Express Publications (Madurai) Pvt. Ltd., publisher of The New Indian Express, from using the “The New Indian Express” brand for events, programmes or other commercial activities outside the five southern States and Union Territories specified under a 1995 Memorandum of Settlement (MoS) and a subsequent 2005 Supplemental MoS executed within the Indian Express Group. The Division Bench comprising Justices Bharati Dangre and Manjusha Deshpande dismissed the publisher’s appeal and affirmed the Single Judge’s order, finding no infirmity in the grant of interim relief.
Madras High Court Rejects Appeal in Dhruva Natchathiram Dispute
The Madras High Court dismissed an appeal filed by creditors seeking relief concerning the release of the long-delayed film Dhruva Natchathiram. The Court declined to interfere with the existing order, providing greater clarity on the legal hurdles surrounding the film’s release. The decision underscores the judiciary’s approach in balancing contractual and creditor disputes against commercial considerations in the film industry.
The India Story Receives Legal Notice Over Agricultural Claims
The makers of the upcoming film The India Story have received a legal notice alleging that the film contains misleading and defamatory statements concerning Indian agriculture, including claims relating to “slow poison.” The notice reportedly seeks corrective action before the film’s release. The notice contends that such portrayals may adversely affect public confidence in Indian agriculture and damage the reputation of farmers and agricultural stakeholders.
Kerala High Court Seeks Response in Petition Against Kerala Story 2 OTT Release
The Kerala High Court has sought a response from the producer of Kerala Story 2 in proceedings seeking removal of the film from the OTT platform Zee5. The petition raises concerns regarding the continued availability of the film on digital platforms. The matter reflects the increasing judicial scrutiny surrounding OTT content and the responsibilities of producers and streaming platforms where films are alleged to affect public sentiment or involve sensitive subject matter.
Delhi High Court Upholds Centre’s Ban on Telegram
The Delhi High Court upheld the Central Government’s decision to block Telegram, affirming the Government’s powers under Section 69A of the Information Technology Act, 2000 to direct blocking of an intermediary where statutory requirements are satisfied. The ruling is one of the most significant recent decisions on intermediary regulation and online platform governance in India. It reinforces the scope of governmental blocking powers while contributing to the evolving jurisprudence on digital platforms, national security and freedom of expression.
Television Broadcasters Seek Relaxation of Advertisement Time Cap
Leading television broadcasters have urged the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to revisit the existing cap on advertising minutes permitted on television channels. According to industry stakeholders, broadcasters are increasingly disadvantaged when compared with digital streaming platforms, which operate without comparable restrictions on advertising inventory.
Adobe Executives Face Shareholder Derivative Suit Over AI Copyright Disclosures
A group of Adobe shareholders has filed a shareholder derivative lawsuit in the United States against the company’s current and former directors and senior executives, alleging that they breached their fiduciary duties by making misleading statements regarding Adobe’s artificial intelligence strategy and the legality of its AI training practices. The plaintiffs contend that Adobe repeatedly assured investors that its generative AI models were “commercially safe” and were not trained using infringing copyrighted material, while allegedly concealing the legal risks associated with the datasets used to develop its AI products.
Kerala High Court Defers Proceedings in Landing Page Ratings Matter
The Kerala High Court deferred further hearing in litigation concerning television landing page ratings after the Union Government informed the Court that ratings relating to news television channels should presently remain in abeyance. The dispute concerns the methodology adopted for measuring television viewership and the regulatory oversight of audience measurement systems. The final outcome is expected to have a considerable impact on broadcasters, advertisers and the television ratings ecosystem.
