Justice Saravanan said: “The word ‘Magic’ was commonly used in the food industry and the terms ‘Magic’ and ‘Magical’ were common to the trade. ‘Magic’ was laudatory and a laudatory epithet cannot be given monopoly or protection.”
CITYYou cannot own ‘magic’, Madras high court tells ITC
Sureshkumar | TNN | Jun 18, 2020, 22:25 IST
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Madras high courtCHENNAI: You cannot own ‘magic’, the Madras high court has told ITC, declining to entertain its objection to Nestle India’s use of a word ‘magical masala’ to promote Nestle’s noodles product.
Just as ITC’s laudatory expression ‘magic masala’ for its noodles, Nestle too was using an expression ‘magical masala,’ the high court reasoned, adding: Laudatory expressions like ‘Magic Masala’ and ‘Magical Masala’ cannot be monopolised.
It was ITC’s case that from the year 2010 onwards it had been using the expression ‘Magic Masala’ for its noodles products and therefore use of similar expression – ‘Magical Masala’ — by Nestle from 2013 would amount to passing off (unregistered trademark right) under the Trademark Act.
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Opposing the claim, Nestle contended that ITC cannot claim monopoly over laudatory expressions like ‘Magic’.
Concurring with the submissions, Justice Saravanan said: “The word ‘Magic’ was commonly used in the food industry and the terms ‘Magic’ and ‘Magical’ were common to the trade. ‘Magic’ was laudatory and a laudatory epithet cannot be given monopoly or protection.”
The term ‘Masala’ signified a mixture of ground spices used in Indian cooking and it could not be appropriated. Neither the plaintiff nor the defendant could claim monopoly over the expression ‘Magic’ or ‘Magical’ along with the common word ‘Masala’, Justice Saravanan added.
This apart, the judge asserted that a descriptive term which directly and clearly conveys information about ingredients, qualities and characteristics of the product or services are not protectable at the first instance but may qualify for protection if they assumed a secondary meaning and identified as a particular product or as being from a particular source.
Further, noting that a suggestive term used as a mark which indirectly suggests the qualities and characteristics of a product may be registerable and protected, the court said. However, words may become distinctive on account of their long and uninterrupted use, as a result of which they may get a secondary meaning and the consumer might begin to associate them with the goods of such proprietors.
In the case on hand, ITC has approached the court at the earliest occasion, which cannot be entertained, the judge concluded.
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CITYCoronavirus: Chennai traffic police distribute free masks to commuters
TNN | Jun 18, 2020, 22:11 IST
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CHENNAI: The Chennai City Traffic Police have taken it upon themselves to educate commuters on the importance of wearing masks and staying safe against Covid.
On Wednesday, close to 1,000 commuters without masks were met with traffic police in Porur, Maduravoyal, Alapakkam and Vanagaram. The police pulled them over to educate them on safety precautions and also distributed free masks.
On Thursday, 1000 masks were distributed to commuters and public in Parry’s and George Town.
The initiative by MV Jayagowri, joint commissioner of police (North), also involved a few citizen volunteers in the free distribution of masks and awareness building.
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This is a far better move than merely fining people who do not wear masks.Shasti Brata
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