Nintendo gets relief from Delhi High Court against Bihar company ‘Nintendo India’

The Delhi High Court recently restrained a Bihar-based real estate company from using the name ‘Nintendo India Private Limited’ after Japanese gaming giant Nintendo Co Ltd. (plaintiff) filed a trademark infringement suit [Nintendo Co. Ltd. v. Nintendo India Private Limited & Ors].

Justice Jyoti Singh found that the Japanese company had established a prima facie case for an ex parte interim injunction.

“Looking at the formidable reputation and goodwill of the plaintiff spanning over decades, it is prima facie evident that the adoption of the impugned name is with an objective of encashing on the goodwill and reputation of the plaintiff so as to misrepresent to the public that defendants No. 1-3 have some connection/affiliation/nexus with the plaintiff,” the Court said.

Nintendo told the Court that it was founded in Japan in 1889 and initially manufactured playing cards before expanding into electronic entertainment and video games. Its products include the Game Boy, Nintendo DS, Wii, Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2. It also owns popular gaming franchises such as Super Mario Bros, The Legend of Zelda, Pokémon and Donkey Kong.

The company said ‘Nintendo’ was a coined expression that formed its house mark, corporate name and the most prominent part of its brand identity. It had applied to register the NINTENDO word mark in India in 1983 in Class 28 and was subsequently granted registration.

Nintendo India Private Limited, on the other hand, was registered with the Registrar of Companies in Patna. According to documents placed before the Court, it was engaged in acquiring, managing and dealing in land and other immovable properties.

Nintendo said it learnt about the company in November 2025. It sent a cease-and-desist notice in February 2026 but initially received no response.

Nintendo informed the Court that one of the directors had recently responded by email. She stated that the disputed company name had never been used by her for conducting business, that she did not intend to use it and that she was willing to suffer a decree of permanent injunction. The remaining defendants did not appear before the Court.

The Court observed that Nintendo had acquired the level of reputation in India required under Section 29(4) of the Trade Marks Act, 1999. The provision permits a registered proprietor to restrain the use of its mark even in relation to dissimilar goods or services, subject to the statutory requirements being satisfied.

The Court added that Nintendo did not need to have its trademark formally declared a “well-known trademark” to invoke Section 29(4).

It found the name ‘Nintendo India Private Limited’ deceptively similar to ‘Nintendo Co Ltd’ and Nintendo’s registered marks. Such similarity was likely to cause confusion among members of the public and trade, despite the defendants operating in the real estate sector, the Court held.

Accordingly, the Court restrained the company, its directors, unidentified defendants and anyone acting on their behalf from using ‘Nintendo India Private Limited’ or the NINTENDO mark in any manner amounting to trademark infringement.

Nintendo was represented by advocates Pravin Anand, Saif Khan and Sugandha Yadav.

[Read Order]