Travis Head caught in legal crossfire as RCB takes Uber to court over ‘targeted attack’ in promotional video
RCB's ownership company filed a lawsuit against Uber on charges of disparagement and trademark infringement in a recently-aired advertisement.
Australian star batter Travis Head has found himself in the midst of a legal tussle during the ongoing IPL. A lawsuit was filed by Royal Challengers Sports Pvt Ltd, owners of the Royal Challengers Bengaluru franchise in the IPL, who moved against Uber India Systems Pvt Ltd to the Delhi High Court, on grounds of infringement and disparagement in an advertisement aired earlier this month.
Head had starred in an advertisement for Uber’s bike-taxi Moto service, in a comedic ad which was built around the premise of ‘Baddies in Bengaluru’. In the ad, Head breaks into a stadium to vandalise it with the words ‘Royally Challenged Bengaluru’, before sneaking away by booking an Uber Moto.
However, this humorous play on words wasn’t taken lightly by RCB’s parent company, who accused Uber of brand distortion, as well as copyright infringement for using the phrase ‘Ee saala cup naamde’, which is trademarked to Royal Challengers Sports.
“This is a targeted attempt to mock and dilute the identity of Royal Challengers Bengaluru,” claimed RCB’s counsel Shwetasree Majumder to Justice Saurabh Banerjee, as per LiveLaw.
Majumder further argued that in using and disparaging RCB trademark to promote its service, Uber was going against the law, particularly as commercial partners for a competitor in SRH.
“You had millions of creative ways to do an advertisement. Did you have to do it using my trademark? And using someone who was earlier with me?” argued Majumder, referencing how Head was once part of the RCB franchise before his move to Hyderabad. “Does parity, fair use defence lie in the mouth of Uber Moto?”
“RCB should combat humour with humour, not with a lawsuit…"
However, Uber were equally fearsome in their response to RCB’s suit, with their counsel claiming that using the likeness of the franchise came under fair use and covered by commercial free speech. “If I am referring to RCB and that is the script of the ad, then I am entitled to refer to them so long as I do it without disparaging them or encashing on their reputation, and there is no harm to their trademark,” claimed Uber.
“There is no direct use of the plaintiff’s registered trademarks such as ‘Royal Challengers Bengaluru’. The reference to ‘Bengaluru vs Hyderabad’ is generic and does not amount to infringement,” added Uber’s counsel.
The counsel also demanded that RCB be attuned to the humour expected in such an advertisement, and that the reference to Bangalore was simply due to its reputation as a city with extreme traffic congestion. “RCB should combat humour with humour, not with a lawsuit," said Uber's representative,
After hearing both sides, Justice Banerjee decided to reserve order on the basis that injunction cannot be passed if active disparagement cannot be proven by the filing party: "The moment you ask a person, a layman or a Court to see the ad and decipher, I can form or have an opinion which is different than yours. There lies the issue of injunction.”
“I am reserving order. I will pass the order and will dispose of the application,” concluded the judge, bringing a close to this brief off-pitch battle between RCB and SRH. The teams will meet on May 13 at the Chinnaswamy Stadium, where RCB will try to settle this grudge on the field at their home turf.
