Police drop Jägermeister images from alcohol signs
An Indian state police force has removed signs using pictures of Jägermeister bottles to promote an anti drink-driving campaign.
German company Mast-Jägermeister, which produces the herbal liqueur,had sued the Tamil Nadu police for trademark infringement.
The police had been using images of the bottles on police barricades across Tamil Nadu. Images of a fatal accident appeared next to the bottles.
Jägermeister bottles feature the brand name written in black against an orange background, sitting below a Christian cross placed between the antlers of a stag.
In February, a German tourist travelling through the state had spotted one of the police’s signs opposite the Brihadeeshvara Temple, before reporting it to the drinks company.
After discovering further signs, Mast-Jägermeister asked the police to remove them several times, according to Gaurav Mukerjee, partner at law firm Remfry & Sagar, who represented the company.
The police ignored the requests, Mukerjee said, prompting the company to file suit at the Madras High Court in September.
Mukerjee said while Mast-Jägermeister supports responsible drinking and the police’s campaign, the suit was justified because the company’s trademarks had been used without authorisation.
He added that the signs depicted the Jägermeister trademark in a “bad light” and, “if left unchecked, the same would lead to other third party use and eventual dilution of Jägermeister's proprietary rights”.
Counsel representing the police agreed on October 11 to remove the signs, in what was an “encouraging move” for Mast-Jägermeister, Mukerjee said.
“The decision establishes and reinforces the principle that a registered trademark is exclusive to the proprietor and any use without consent would tantamount to infringement and perpetrate illegality.”
This is a highly unusual case, Mukerjee added, as “we have not come across any similar case wherein a trademark owner has enforced a writ against police authorities for unauthorised use of a trademark”.
Tamil Nadu, the capital of which is Chennai, is India’s 11th largest state.
