Zee takes Blinkit to court over alleged Instagram copyright infringement

New Delhi: Zee Entertainment is turning up the volume on copyright enforcement. The broadcaster has moved the Delhi High Court against Blinkit, alleging that content posted on the quick commerce platform’s Instagram account infringes its copyrighted works, marking its third such legal action in recent months, according to a Mint report.

According to a July 27 order passed by the Delhi High Court, Justice Jyoti Singh admitted the suit filed by Zee Entertainment Enterprises against Blink Commerce Pvt. Ltd., which operates Blinkit. The court issued summons to the company and sought its response to Zee’s plea for an interim injunction restraining the use of the disputed content.

The matter is scheduled to be heard on August 14.

As part of the proceedings, the court also permitted Zee to place screen recordings of the allegedly infringing Instagram post on record. The order refers to a pen drive containing screen recordings of the content allegedly created and uploaded by Blinkit on its Instagram account.

The court directed Blinkit to file its written statement within 30 days of receiving the summons. However, it did not examine the merits of Zee’s allegations or make any finding on whether copyright infringement had occurred. At this stage, the court has only issued notice to the defendant and fixed a date to hear Zee’s application for interim relief.

The high court also exempted Zee from the mandatory pre-institution mediation process, observing that the broadcaster had sought urgent relief. The order noted that, given the nature of the case, the requirement for pre-institution mediation could be waived.

The latest case is part of a broader enforcement drive by Zee to curb the alleged unauthorised commercial use of its content.

In April, the broadcaster sued JioStar, alleging that the media company continued hosting and commercially exploiting content containing Zee’s copyrighted works even after licensing agreements signed in 2017 and 2020 had expired. That dispute has since been referred to mediation before the Delhi High Court Mediation and Conciliation Centre.

Zee has also claimed that JioStar sought a one-month extension to the licensing arrangement in November 2025 as a precautionary measure to cover inadvertent use of its content, but alleged that instances of infringement continued even after the extension lapsed. The matter remains pending.

Separately, Zee filed a suit against Nykaa in April, alleging that the beauty and fashion retailer used its copyrighted music in 12 promotional Instagram Reels to market products. Zee argued that its licensing arrangement with Meta Platforms covers only non-commercial, user-generated content and does not extend to commercial brand promotions.

Nykaa has sought to implead Meta Platforms as a party to the proceedings and has requested that the dispute also be referred to mediation.

The Blinkit case underscores the growing legal scrutiny around brands’ use of copyrighted music and video content on social media, as media companies increasingly seek to define the limits of commercial content creation in the digital advertising ecosystem.