The Delhi High Court ruled against Google on May 22, finding it liable for trademark infringement in its keyword advertising practices. The case, brought by bathroom fittings brand Hindware, found that Google's AdWords platform allowed competitors to bid on trademarked brand names to divert search traffic. The ruling drew public support from prominent Indian founders including Zerodha's Nithin Kamath and Zoho's Sridhar Vembu, who argued the practice forces companies to pay to protect their own brand names in search results. Google maintains its policy prohibits trademarked terms in ad copy. Legal experts caution the ruling's broader impact may be limited, but note it signals that platforms offering trademarked keywords to advertisers could be seen as active participants rather than passive intermediaries.
