IndiaMART has moved the Calcutta High Court, alleging selective and unjustified discrimination by OpenAI for excluding its platform from ChatGPT search results. The court observed a strong prima facie case but deferred interim relief.
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KOLKATA: IndiaMART InterMESH Limited, India’s leading business-to-business (B2B) online marketplace, has approached the Calcutta High Court alleging that OpenAI unlawfully excluded IndiaMART’s website and listings from search results generated by ChatGPT, resulting in significant reputational and commercial harm.
The matter, titled IndiaMART InterMESH Limited v. OpenAI Inc and Ors, was heard by Justice Ravi Krishan Kapur on December 24, 2024.
IndiaMART has accused OpenAI of selective and unjustified discrimination, claiming that while its platform has been deliberately prevented from being surfaced in AI-generated responses, competing B2B and e-commerce platforms continue to appear prominently in ChatGPT outputs.
The company contended that such exclusion unfairly disadvantages IndiaMART in the digital marketplace, especially given the increasing reliance on AI-driven tools for business discovery and decision-making.
Court’s Observation
In his observations, Justice Kapur acknowledged that IndiaMART had made out a strong prima facie case, noting that continued exclusion could result in tangible commercial injury.
“It prima facie appears that the petitioner is being selectively discriminated and unjustifiably excluded without any logic. Inevitably, there is loss of goodwill, reputation and commercial injury which is being caused to the petitioner,”
the Court observed.
However, the Court declined to grant interim relief at this stage, stating that granting such relief would effectively amount to final relief without hearing the respondents. OpenAI remained unrepresented despite prior service of notice.
Justice Kapur directed IndiaMART’s counsel to effect fresh service upon OpenAI and listed the matter for further hearing on January 13, 2025.
IndiaMART’s Claims
In its petition, IndiaMART highlighted its global presence across more than 40 countries, with thousands of employees worldwide. The company also emphasized that “IndiaMART” is a well-known trademark under the Trade Marks Act, 1999.
IndiaMART has alleged that OpenAI’s conduct amounts to:
- Trade libel through implied disparagement
- Trademark dilution
- Injurious falsehood
- Unfair competition
According to the company, the exclusion has led to loss of goodwill, reputation, and business opportunities.
A key aspect of IndiaMART’s argument is that OpenAI allegedly relied on reports issued by the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR), in which IndiaMART has been named.
IndiaMART argued that:
- It was never given prior notice or an opportunity to respond to the allegations in the USTR report
- OpenAI’s reliance on the report is arbitrary, unilateral, and without legal basis
The company further pointed out that other entities named in the same USTR reports, including DHgate, Pinduoduo, Shopee, and Taobao, continue to appear in ChatGPT responses, raising serious concerns about selective treatment and inconsistency.
Case Title:
IndiaMART InterMESH Limited v. OpenAI Inc and Ors.
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