Ogilvy agency takes Vivo to court over plagiarism
Brand David, an agency that is part of the Ogilvy and WPP group in India, is taking phone manufacturer Vivo to court over alleged plagiarism of an ad.
According to reports, an interim order asked Vivo to pay Rs 1 crore but a hearing on 22 November 2019 will seek to establish a complete verdict.
Brand David is claiming that an ad for the V17 Pro, which is still airing and features Bollywood actor Aamir Khan, came from an idea the agency pitched to the business. Brand David says that when it pitched for the business last year, it submitted an idea with an amusement park.
According to the court order, the agency had said: “The entire execution of the impugned advertisement or at least the very essence of it is an infringement of copyright.”
An article in Business Standard quotes a spokesperson for Vivo who denies any wrongdoing. “Vivo’s values are built on strong ethical and contractual foundations. We accord a lot of attention to our work. The matter is sub judice and we shall wait for the law to take its course.”
The agency behind the ad, Dentsu Impact, has also said it didn’t plagiarise the idea and that it had enough talent within the agency to build only entirely unique ideas.
The issue of plagiarism is widely debated in advertising, a recent example being Hong Kong Ballet claiming electronics brand Little Swan plagiarised its print ads this year. Claims don’t often get to court but agencies have been fired over allegations.
The result of the court order will be decided when the companies meet in court on 22 November 2019.
Source: The Drum
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