Recently, Fashnear Technologies Private Limited, the owner of the online platform “Meesho”, filed a suit seeking permanent injunction against rouge websites for unauthorizedly using the Plaintiff’s trade marks and/or copyright to defraud and dupe general public in the name of the Plaintiff.
The plaintiff alleges that the rouge websites with the infringing domain names being ‘www.meeshogift.in’, ‘www.meeshogift.com’ and ‘www.meeshoonlineluckydraw.in’ have been approaching customers and informing them that they have won a lottery prize and inducing them to submit their bank account details and pay advance charges (by way of processing fees or other charges) to receive the prize amount or to avail free gifts such as cars, motor bikes, cash prize, electronics, etc.
The court observing that the plaintiff’s well-known mark “MEESHO” has been infringed and various illegal activities are carried out in the name of the plaintiff, passed necessary directions, so as to restrain the three fake online marketplaces with the infringing domain names from operating and ordered that the domain names shall remain suspended or deactivated by the Domain Name Registrar (“DNR”) and that the contact details of the persons, who have registered domain names shall be handed over to the Plaintiff, for further investigation to be carried out. The court further directed for issuing blocking orders for the said three domain names, till further orders of the Court, and ordered all the Internet Service Providers to also give effect to these directions, to further ensure no other fake websites/domain names containing the mark/name ‘Meesho’ is registered by them. The order further stated that if Plaintiff gives notice of any other infringing websites, the DNR shall deactivate the said website/domain name, within 48 hours.
While, taking into account similar other cases where the well-known marks are being used fraudulently and public at large are being deceived, the court order that the investigation of all such similar cases shall continue together and a consolidated report must be presented before the next hearing date.
Fashnear Technologies Private Limited Vs Meesho Online Shopping PVT. LTD & ANR. CS (COMM) 475/2022