Chennai: The Madras High Court has resolved legal issues, allowing the Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) to use the abbreviation KSRTC and granting ownership of all its trademarks. Both Kerala and Karnataka have utilized the KSRTC abbreviation for their state-owned public transport corporations since 1965 and 1973, respectively.
To avoid confusion and protect its established reputation, KSRTC obtained trademark certificates and copyrights, given the emergence of private players using similar logos and names. The corporation secured trademark certificates from the Government of India’s Trade Mark Registry in 2013 for the use of the acronym KSRTC. Additionally, copyrights were obtained from the Registrar of Copyrights for the use of the KSRTC logo and the Gandabherunda art.
A dispute arose when the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation challenged KSRTC’s use of the mark before the Intellectual Property Appellate Board (IPAB) in Chennai. KSRTC argued that Kerala RTC was aware of the mark’s usage by Karnataka RTC for 42 years, implying that they had acquiesced to its use.
The release by KSRTC revealed that the High Court of Madras, on December 12, dismissed the applications filed by Kerala RTC. Consequently, KSRTC faces no legal impediment to using the name KSRTC in the future.
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