India court orders Amazon to pay $39 million in damages in BHPC case

27/2/2025 15:29

An Indian court has ordered an Amazon unit to pay $39 million in damages for infringing the "Beverly Hills Polo Club" trademark after garments with identical branding were sold on Amazon's India website, a court order showed on Wednesday.



Indian lawyers called the ruling a landmark judgment in terms of the amount of damages assessed against a U.S. firm in trademark cases. It comes after an India antitrust investigation found Amazon flouted competition laws by giving preference to select sellers on its India website - charges the company denies.

The trademark case was initiated in 2020 by Lifestyle Equities, the owner of "Beverly Hills Polo Club" (BHPC) horse trademark, which alleged Amazon's India shopping website had listings of apparel with a similar logo at a fraction of the price.



The infringing brand was owned by Amazon Technologies and sold on the Amazon India website, the court said.



"The logo which has been used is hardly distinguishable," the Delhi High Court noted in its 85-page order, which also contained photos of T-shirts comparing the two logos.