Delhi HC rejects RCB’s plea against Uber’s YouTube ad featuring Travis Head

Delhi High Court on Monday dismissed the interim injunction plea filed by IPL team Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) against Uber Moto over allegedly disparaging YouTube advertisement featuring Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH)’s cricketer Travis Head, according to LiveLaw.

Justice Saurabh Banerjee dismissed RCB’s application for an interim injunction, noting that the contested advertisement does not warrant any intervention at this juncture.

“The impugned advertisement is in the context of a game- cricket, a game of sportsmanship which in the opinion of this court does not call for any interference of any sort at this stage,” Livelaw quoted the Delhi High Court.

“More so, since, in a case like the present one, interference by this court at this stage would tantamount to fall, allowing the plaintiff to run on water with assurances of their not falling. Accordingly, the present application is dismissed,” the Court added.

Uber Moto’s Hyderabaddie Ad featuring Travis Head

The Uber YouTube advertisement, part of the “Hyderabaddie” campaign, features cricketer Travis Head, who plays for Sunrisers Hyderabad. In the ad, Head is shown playfully altering a banner to read “Royally Challenged Bengaluru,” a pun targeting the rival IPL team Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB).

WATCH THE AD HERE

The commercial, intended to promote Uber’s bike taxi service, sparked controversy as RCB claimed it disparaged their brand and infringed on their trademark.

What is The Case by RCB Against Uber?

Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), an Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise, initiated legal proceedings against Uber India Systems Pvt Ltd in the Delhi High Court over a controversial advertisement released by Uber.

The YoutTube ad, part of Uber’s “Hyderabaddie” campaign promoting its bike taxi service Uber Moto, features Australian cricketer Travis Head, who currently plays for Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) and is a former RCB player.

In the advertisement, Travis Head is depicted sneaking into a stadium ahead of a Bengaluru versus Hyderabad IPL match and spray-painting the banner to read “Royally Challenged Bengaluru,” a pun on RCB’s name.

This act, coupled with the use of RCB’s trademarked slogan “Ee Sala Cup Namde,” was alleged by RCB to disparage and dilute their trademark and brand identity.

The 0.59 seconds video has 2 million views at present.

RCB contended that Uber’s ad constituted an unauthorised use and distortion of their trademark, amounting to commercial mockery and brand dilution, especially since Uber Moto is a commercial sponsor of SRH, a rival IPL team.

The franchise sought an interim injunction to restrain Uber from airing the advertisement.

Uber, on the other hand, defended the ad as a form of commercial free speech and marketing, dismissing the lawsuit as baseless. The Delhi High Court, while acknowledging prima facie merit in RCB’s claims, reserved its order on the plea for interim relief.

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