ASUS Restrained from Selling Smartphones with Zenfone Branding in India

Last month, ASUS launched the all-new Zenfone 6 flagship smartphone in Europe. The company recently announced to launch its 2019 flagship smartphone on June 19th in India. However, the company now ran into a huge problem in the Indian market. The Delhi High Court now restrained the Taiwanese company from using the Zen, Zenfone, or any other similar trademark in India. While we are still waiting for the company’s statement, the outcome could affect the upcoming Zenfone launch in India.

The case was filed by New Delhi-based Telecare Network India Pvt Ltd against ASUS. The Telecare Network said that it has been using the Zen and Zen Mobile trademarks continuously and extensively in their product lineup since 2008. It also says ASUS is using the identical trademark for selling similar products and also at the similar price range. As of now, ASUS cannot sell or advertise mobile phones, mobile accessories or any other related products with the Zen and Zenfone trademarks.

Apart from the Zenfone branded smartphones, the company also sells laptop under ZenBook series. However, the court order might not affect the Zenbook series since the Telecare Network doesn’t sell any laptops. Also, ASUS calls its user interface as Zen UI and it might have to rename it at least for the Indian market. The order was delivered by the Delhi High Court on May 28th and will come into force after eight weeks from the order delivered date.

On the other hand, ASUS argues that its chairman Jonney Shih is a strong believer of the Zen philosophy and the Zenfone branding is the reflection of the same. The company also mentioned that it is using the Zen design for its products called concentric circles for a very long time. However, the court says Zen is a generic word qua a school of Buddhism and is not a generic mark related to mobile phones or tablets. The next hearing by the court is set for July 10 and we need to wait for that to get more updates.

Here is the official statement from ASUS:

The ASUS legal team is currently working with the Delhi High Court in India to resolve the Zen Mobiles and ZenFone trademark lawsuit. The supply of ASUS smartphones, notebooks, and other products, as well as technical support and after-sales service for all ASUS products remain unchanged for all consumers.