Delhi High Court: Phonetic Similarity Between ‘boAt’ and ‘Boult’ Marks Enough to Cause Confusion

The Delhi High Court has held that the phonetic similarity between the marks ‘boAt’ and ‘Boult’ is significant and can cause consumer confusion, despite their goods being sold primarily online.

The Court was dealing with an appeal preferred by Exotic Mile. The company submitted that it has discontinued 'Boult' marks but proposes to use the mark GOBOULT.

While acknowledging that the visual dissimilarity and online sales environment may lessen confusion, the court held that the aural similarity alone was sufficient to establish a case of trademark infringement.

Consequently, the court granted an interim injunction restraining Boult Audio from using the ‘Boult’ mark, which was deemed deceptively similar to the established ‘boAt’ trademark.

[Exotic Mile v. Imagine Marketing Pvt Ltd.]