IPR implications of brand genericide

Genericide is the combination of two words – generic and suicide. Genericide happens when a court finds that a brand name has lost its source-identifying power and has become just another word in the language, a term identifying not a single producer's products but the product class to which they belong (hence, ‘generic‘). A finding of genericide results in cancellation of the trademark; hence the IPR implications need to be considered carefully. Trademark owners seek to maximize the popularity of their marks, and may believe that a certain level of genericide demonstrates how well-known and successful a mark has become. However, generic use of a trademark presents an inherent risk to the effective enforcement of trademark rights and may ultimately lead to serious repercussions. Genericide forms the crux of this research -the questions that need to be addressed and the strategies needed to tackle this conundrum. The methodologies of determining genericide have been studied broadly. The research shown in this paper studies the prominent packaged drinking water brand Bisleri, which has become generic and may (someday) be in danger of losing its trademark. It also analyzes arguments that provide evidence to evaluate the various issues discussed in this paper.