Bombay Shaving Company to take down Insta reel on OmniBlade after Philips moves Delhi High Court

Visage Lines Personal Care, the company Bombay Shaving Company, on Thursday told the Delhi High Court that it will remove an Instagram reel alleged to be false and disparaging of Philips' “OneBlade” trimmer [Koninklijke Philips NV Vs Visage Lines Personal Care Pvt Ltd].

The submission was made before Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora during the hearing of a suit moved by Philips.

Visage Lines maintained that its advertisement was not disparaging; nevertheless it agreed to take down the reel after the Court said that it would pass an interim order if the reel is not taken down.

"Learned counsel for Defendant No. 1 states on instructions that the impugned advertisement which appears as a reel on Instagram has been created by its representatives as part of the Defendant’s Razorpreneur Challenge. She states, without prejudice to Defendant’s right to assert that it is in fact not a disparaging reel and is permitted in law, the Defendant undertakes to take it down until the application under Order 39 Rules 1 and 2 is heard and decided. She clarifies that the reel will be taken down not only by the Defendant, but also its representatives, from all social media handles. The statement of Defendant No. 1 is taken on record and they are bound down to the same," the Court said in the order passed today.

Senior Advocate Akhil Sibal, who appeared for Philips, argued that the reel promoted Bombay Shaving Company’s “OmniBlade” trimmer by making claims that were misleading and untrue.

The reel conveyed that OmniBlade was “cut-free,” multifunctional with trim, shave and style features, and available at half the price of Philips’ OneBlade. He argued that these assertions were false and intended to disparage its product and mislead consumers.

Sibal submitted that its OneBlade incorporates patented technology that prevents nicks and cuts, has long offered features for face and body, and is priced competitively in the same range as OmniBlade. He further stressed that the false comparison was designed to denigrate its reputation and divert customers.

However Advocate Shwetasree Majumdar, appearing for Bombay Shaving Company, said the reel was not a scripted advertisement but had been created by representatives as part of a promotional challenge. She argued that the reel did not contain any disparaging elements as claimed by Philips and was well within the contours of permissible advertising.

However, after hearing the parties for sometime, the Court expressed its inclination to pass an interim order. The Court also asked Majumdar to obtain instructions from Bombay Shaving Company as to whether it would take down the reel to avoid an ad-interim order. Subsequently, the Company agreed to take the reel down.

The Court directed compliance within 36 hours and stressed that the undertaking extends to all social media accounts operated by the company or its representatives.

It also issued summons in the suit filed by Philips, granted the defendants 30 days to file their written statement, and allowed Philips the same time for replication.

Sibal was briefed by advocate Aditya Gupta from Ira Law.