NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court on Monday dismissed an interim plea by IPL team Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), which had sought to stop the circulation of an Uber Moto advertisement on YouTube.
The ad features Sunrisers Hyderabad player Travis Head and, according to RCB, unfairly targets their team brand.
Justice Saurabh Banerjee turned down the request, stating that the advertisement, being rooted in the context of cricket, did not require judicial interference at this point. The Court noted that since cricket is a sport known for its spirit of fair play, the nature of the ad did not seem harmful enough to merit any legal restraint.
The judge further remarked that stepping in at this stage would be akin to offering blind reassurance to the plaintiff (RCB), allowing them to proceed without a proper legal footing. Hence, the plea was rejected.
The case was filed by Royal Challengers Sports Private Limited over Uber Moto’s YouTube advertisement titled “Baddies in Bengaluru ft. Travis Head”, a short clip that has already gathered 2 million views. RCB was represented by Advocate Shwetasree Majumder, while Uber Moto was represented by Advocate Saikrishna Rajagopal.
Majumder argued that the ad unfairly uses RCB’s trademark in a derogatory way. She pointed out that in the video; Travis Head’s character is seen heading towards the Bengaluru cricket stadium, apparently to deface signage for the match between Bengaluru and Hyderabad. The character then spray-paints the words “Royally Challenged Bengaluru”, which, Majumder claimed, mocks and damages RCB’s trademark.
She argued that any such negative portrayal amounts to brand disparagement. According to her, Uber Moto, as a commercial sponsor of the Sunrisers Hyderabad team, used a deceptive variant of RCB’s name to promote its services, something not permitted under intellectual property law. She further added that viewer comments beneath the video confirmed that people clearly understood the ad as taking a dig at RCB.
In response, Rajagopal claimed that the lawsuit had no solid basis and criticised RCB for lacking a sense of humour. He said the ad’s core message was simply to remind people about the match on May 13 between RCB and Sunrisers Hyderabad, and to suggest using Uber Moto to avoid Bengaluru’s heavy traffic.
He also argued that the advertisement was protected as commercial free speech and should not be restricted by the court. Describing the lawsuit as excessive, Rajagopal said that if RCB felt mocked, it should respond in kind, with humour, not litigation.