Google has challenged a Delhi High Court ruling that it infringed on a company's trademark rights by permitting competitors to use the company's name as an advertising keyword. In a July 7 filing reviewed by Reuters, Google argued that the decision will hurt consumers and disrupt the digital advertising industry.
Ruling Details and Google's Appeal
The May 2024 ruling ordered Google to pay damages of $31,600 and other litigation costs. In its 4,761-page appeal, which is not public but was reviewed by Reuters, Google stated that the decision makes India the "sole outlier" among global jurisdictions, with "serious consequences for the digital advertising industry, online consumer choice, and competitive markets."
Google confirmed to Reuters that it is appealing the order, which it said "diverges from established legal precedents in India." The company added that its ads policies reflect standard practices that enable competition. Google India's appeal will be heard in the coming days.
Arguments Over Keyword Use
Justice Mini Pushkarna, who issued the May decision, wrote that Google could not be permitted to shrug off responsibility after making a tool available that leads to trademark infringement. "Google has attempted to sell something that it simply does not own," Pushkarna wrote.
In its appeal, Google rejects the position that it infringed trademarks, arguing that "a keyword is merely used as an internal and backend trigger to display an ad" and is simply "making advertising space available." Google further argued that researchers have observed that consumers may search for a brand to identify and assess alternatives, and that the ruling will effectively grant trademark owners a "monopoly over advertising space to the detriment of consumers."
Impact on India's Online Ad Market
If upheld, Indian lawyers and tech experts say the original ruling will have wide-ranging ramifications for how the online ads market operates. Indian matchmaking service Shaadi.com, for example, said that it would change the economics of online ads for millions of businesses that were suffering when their competitors bid on their name and Google took a fee.
Google earned $4.1 billion in gross advertising revenue in India last year, but the company is also facing a raft of antitrust cases and court battles in the country. These include legal challenges over AI training and stricter-than-ever content takedown regulations that began applying to tech companies from February.
