RICHARDSON VICKS INC Vs. MEDICO LABORATORIES

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The plaintiff No. I is a Corporation organised and existing under the laws of the State of Delaware, United States of America and inter alia carrying on the business of manufacturing and selling of medicinal and pharmaceutical preparations. Plaintiff No. 2 is also a company incorporated under the Indian Companies Act and carrying on the business as manufacturers of bulk drugs, pharmaceutical and medicinal preparations. The defendant firm is also dealing in the same line. The plaintiffs have filed the present suit seeking the relief of perpetual injunction restraining the defendants, their servants and agents from manufacturing and sale of any pharmaceutical or other preparations of strips bearing the design, layout, colour scheme and get up hereto or any other strip or the words 'POWER 555" so as to infringe the plaintiff No. 1's registered trade mark No. 316130 in respect of the label mark containing the words 'VICKS ACTION 500'.

(2.) As per the ferments plaintiff No. 1 is the registered proprietor of the label mark containing the words 'VICKS ACTION 500' wherein the word 'ACTION' and the numeral '500' have been disclaimed. The plaintiffs have been marketing the product in a foil strip packing having a distinctive design, lay out, get up and colour scheme. The said trade mark consists of strips with a silver backgfound,and green rectangles as well as a green and a read triangle. The words 'ACTION 500' are printed in red prints and other letters 'VICKS' and 'COLDS MEDICINE' in blue print. The strips also contain yellow unique shaped tablets. Plaintiff No. 2 has been permitted by plaintiff No. I to use the said registered trade mark subject to the supervision and control of the standards prescribed by plaintiff No. 1. The plaintiff No. 2 has been extensively and exclusively marketing, offering for sale the said product since the year 1976. The strip in fact represents an original artistic and literal works in respect of which plaintiff No. 1 is entitled to a subsisting copyright. The sale figure of this product in the year 1983-84 was to the extent of Rs. 99.04.000.00 . The plaintiff No. 2 has also been advertising their product in various media and have been using the slogan 'DOUBLE POWER VICKS ACTION 500'. in connection with this produce since July, 1981 on which about Rs. 11 lakhs have been speat. The plaintiff's trade mark 'VICKS ACTION 500' is easily recognised and identified by the distinctive design, lay out> colour scheme and get up of the strip and it has come to connote and denote exclusively with the plaintiff's product.

(3.) The plaintiff No. 2 sometime in the month of July, 1984 has come to know that the defendants were marketing their product under the name 'POWER 555' in strips with a design, :lay out, colour scheme and get up and other features which were identical with or deceptively and/or confusingly similar to the strips of those used by the, plaintiff inrespect of their product 'VICKS ACTION 500'. The defendants infact have taken the word 'POWER' from the plaintiff's advertisements which is the synonym of the word 'action' and connotes and denotes the same concept and idea. The (defendants are also using a foil strip packings having asilver background and green rectangles and the tablets of the same colour. By using the said strips the defendants are passing off their goods as and for the goods of the plaintiff. With a view to restrain such blatant unlawful activities on the part of the defendants, the plaintiffs served the defendants with a legal notice calling upon them to desist forthwith from manufacturing, marketing, selling, offering for sale their product under the mark 'POWER 555' in strips bearing the design lay out, get up, colour scheme and other features identical with or deceptively or confusingly similar to the strips of the plaintiff's product.