Pranav Shukla
The Delhi High Court on 18th December, 2024, issued an interim injunction in favor of Swedish multinational IKEA in a trademark infringement case against the Indian firm IKEY Home Studio in Inter Ikea Systems BV vs. IKey Home Studio LLP and Anr.
Justice Mini Pushkarna ordered the Indian company to stop using the names ‘IKEY’, ‘IKEY Home Studio’, or any other marks that closely resemble IKEA’s trademark, and prohibited them from misrepresenting their products as those of IKEA.
The order dated December 18 states that, “Until the next hearing, Defendant No. 1, along with its partners, legal heirs, employees, agents, representatives, and anyone acting in coordination with them, is prohibited from selling, advertising, importing, exporting, or otherwise dealing with goods or offering services under the marks ‘IKEY’, ‘IKEY HOME STUDIO’, or any other similar marks that could infringe on IKEA’s trademark and mislead consumers into believing the defendant’s products are those of IKEA”.
The Court also ordered the suspension of the domain name ‘ikeyllp.com’ for the duration of the case and directed the disclosure of the registrant’s details for that domain.
IKEA informed the Court that, “in addition to its legal rights over the IKEA trademark internationally, the trademark has been recognized as well-known in various countries, including but not limited to China, Chile, Indonesia, Italy, Kazakhstan, the EU, Turkey, and Vietnam. Furthermore, the WIPO Arbitration and Conciliation Centre has issued multiple rulings acknowledging the well-known status of the IKEA trademark”.
The Court stated that the plaintiff has presented a strong preliminary case for an injunction, and if an ex-parte ad-interim injunction is not granted, the plaintiff will face irreparable harm.
Additionally, the Court noted that the balance of convenience favors the plaintiff and works against the defendants.
Case Name:- Inter Ikea Systems BV vs. IKey Home Studio LLP and Anr.
Case Number:- CS(COMM) 1143/2024
Bench:- Justice Mini Pushkarna