News: Legal Action Taken Against HomeGuru.com.my

Legal Action Taken Against HomeGuru.com.my

15/4/2011 5:55:00 PM

Dear esteemed customers, As you may be aware, there have been many complaints lodged by numerous customers regarding the website HomeGuru.com.my, which we emphasise is not related to iProperty.com Malaysia or Home-Guru.com.my. We wish to assure you that iProperty.com Malaysia views the complaints with utmost seriousness. We have and will always strive to safeguard your interests as our valuable customers. As such, to ensure that this matter is addressed swiftly and in the most appropriate manner , we have instructed the commencement of a civil suit at the Kuala Lumpur High Court against HomeGuru.com.my based on, among others, the following grounds:- i. Infringement of copyright; ii. Passing Off; iii. Defamation, iv. Malicious falsehood; and v. Unlawful interference with trade. The civil suit is supported by a few agents as co-plaintiffs. In our civil suit against HomeGuru.com.my, we have pleaded that they have reproduced property listings found on the iProperty.com Malaysia's website without our consent and/or that of our valuable customers. As a result, our customers have received calls from numerous consumers inquiring about properties that are not under their care, leading to great confusion, inconvenience and damage. We wish to emphasise that when an agent advertises on iProperty.com Malaysia, the exclusivity of their contents will be vigilantly and zealously guarded by us. Accordingly, it is our responsibility to act on our customer' behalf to protect their rights and to ensure that this exclusivity is respected and maintained at all times. We also wish to put on record that iProperty.com Malaysia was the first to launch the website under the domain name "Home-Guru.com.my" in Malaysia. The allegation by HomeGuru.com.my (when they first ventured into the Malaysian market), that they are the first to use the same domain name is therefore incorrect. In addition, we note that HomeGuru.com.my and/or their agents have produced a series of YouTube videos claiming to be "The True Guru". We are of the view that the videos also contain remarks and references that are disparaging to iProperty.com Malaysia and Home-Guru.com.my. The widespread broadcast of the YouTube videos has caused serious damage to the reputation and brand names iProperty.com Malaysia and Home-Guru.com.my. We take this opportunity to assure you that notwithstanding our civil action against HomeGuru.com.my, your business dealings with iProperty.com Malaysia and Home-Guru.com.my will continue as normal and will not be jeopardised in any way. We emphasize again that it is our aim to work continuously towards protecting the interest of our agents! For any enquiries, please call 03-2264 6888 or email agent@iproperty.com.