Bloomberg UTV imitates, Mint not flattered

Imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery, but Bloomberg UTV's reprise of Mint's campaign” in which Mint had suggested that its business news would not seem like Greek to its readers” has made UTV Bloomberg vulnerable to being fired with Latin phrases. To put it simply, Mint has sued Bloomberg UTV and the latter may have to defend itself in court in the face of charges such as mala fide intention and suo moto counterfeiting!

In an exclusive conversation with Adgully, Sandeep Bhushan, the COO of Mint, explained the rationale of the lawsuit. "UTV Bloomberg's campaign is identical to our campaign which was released a year back," Bhushan said. "Our lawyers have issued notice asking them to cease the campaign. We had used Greek characters to highlight the fact that business news should be about clarity. The campaign has provoked consumers to reevaluate their choice. Now they [Bloomberg UTV] have tried to borrow our intellectual property."

Adgully then asked Bhushan if Bloomberg's ad could be innocent of deliberate plagiarism, and perhaps the channel could have been unaware of Mint's creative flourish. "Our campaign had won the Abby at the Goa Fest, our positioning is not only acceptable but well regarded," Bhushan said. "That is why we would like to restrain Bloomberg UTV from using our creative line. Ours is an award-winning campaign, hence there can be no ignorance about it. And our readers can judge the case for themselves."

As for Bloomberg UTV, Adgully's strenuous attempts failed to elicit a response. However, Taproot India, the creative agency for the channel, issued a guarded response. "It is correct that Mint has filed a legal notice, but Bloomberg UTV has forbidden us from commenting," said Agnello Dias, the founder and chief creative officer of Taproot India.