Asus Banned From Selling ‘Zen’ Branded Smartphones, Laptops & Accessories in India By Delhi High Court

Asus India has been restricted from retailing majority of its products in the country including smartphones, laptops and other accessories. This ban has been issued by Delhi High Court under the interim order to restrict the Taiwanese tech giant from selling any product carrying 'Zen' branding. If the sources are to be believed Asus will have to stop selling its popular ZenFone mobile phones as well as ZenBook laptops in the country. Asus Announces Dual-screen ZenBook Pro Duo Laptop at Computex 2019.

Initiated reported by Bar & Bench, Asus has been asked to stop selling Zen branded products in India after the company was found infringing the 'Zen' trademark. This trademark was filed by Telecare Network in the year 2008 for badging its Android smartphones. However, Asus also used Zen branding for its ZenFone series by making an entry into the Indian market in 2014. The sources also reveal that the Taiwanese tech company also used for premium Windows 10 laptops Series called ZenBook. The Delhi High Court found that the 'Zen' part in both the Asus product lineup has caused a lot of confusion.

The Delhi High Court mentioned that, "the triple identity test is satisfied as the defendants have made use of a deceptively similar/identical trademark(ZENFONE) in relation to identical goods (mobile phones) having identical trade channels the defendants having adopted a deceptively similar mark wherein the dominant part of the defendant's mark ZENFONE is the plaintiff's mark ZEN, for the same product i.e. mobile phones, shows prima facie that there is a likelihood of confusion and damage to the plaintiff's goodwill."

The bench also added that, "Consequently the defendants (Asus) having adopted a deceptively similar mark wherein the dominant part of the defendant's mark ZenFone is the plaintiff's (Telecare) mark Zen, for the same product i.e. mobile phones, shows prima facie that there is a likelihood of confusion and damage to the plaintiff's goodwill," the bench added.

On the other hand, Asus India mentioned that," The Asus legal team is currently working with the Delhi High Court in India to resolve the Zen Mobiles and ZenFone trademark lawsuit. The supply of ASUS smartphones, notebooks and other products, as well as technical support and after-sales service for all ASUS products remain unchanged for all consumers.”

As a result, Asus has been asked by the HC bench to halt the sale of its product lineup with 'Zen' branding with immediate effect. It is important to note that this is an interim order from HC and Asus still has a chance to go back to the court with a valid solution or argument to get the ban removed.

The company is also preparing to launch its new flagship smartphone - ZenFone 6, in India. The phone is already launched in the global market. The device comes with Snapdragon 855 SoC, notch-less fullscreen display, Flip Camera system and much more.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 06, 2019 12:26 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).