2019 hasn’t been a very welcoming year for the smartphone industry as Huawei, the world’s second-biggest smartphone maker was slapped with a trade ban by the US government. That ongoing saga is yet to see an end and we already have another big story. Reports coming from India say that Asus will no longer be allowed to use the word Zen in its products due to trademark infringement. The ruling will go into force eight weeks from now.
The Delhi court announced the ruling as Telecare Network, a company in India has complained that it has been using Zen and ZenMobile as its product monikers since 2008. Telecare Network also alleged that Asus used the Zen moniker to “ride upon its goodwill” that it created in the market. The company also stated that the ZenFone branding of Asus will create “confusion in the minds of the public.”
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Asus pleaded with the court by saying that the word Zen has roots in Buddhism and it has several trademarks with Zen in the name.
The Taiwanese handset maker still has a chance to convince the court to repeal the ruling. The next hearing is scheduled for July 10. The worst that can result from this case is that Asus will lose the case and that is when it would have to use a new branding for its popular ZenFone in India. Asus is getting ready to launch the ZenFone 6 in India soon.
