Akshata Sharma
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FMCG startup Fit and Flex sends legal notice to Sony Network over suspension of social media accounts.
This is the second time Sony got legal notice from a startup that featured in one of its Shark Tank India episodes.
The founder, Parthik Patel, shared on Linkedin that Sony Entertainment Television accused Fit and Flex of trademark violations, taking severe actions without prior notice.
They struck down social media posts featuring clips from the Shark Tank episode, blocked their ad account, unpublished their Facebook page, and disabled collaboration features on both brand and personal accounts. The founder stated that no warning was given despite guidelines allowing for three months of marketing usage from the airing date.
The content was removed within 25 days, prompting Fit and Flex to stop using any Shark Tank clips in their posts. Despite daily attempts to resolve the issue with Meta and Sony, no solution has been offered.
Over 70 other brands reportedly face similar challenges.
Patel wrote further that his business plummeted by 10-12 times instead of the anticipated growth.
"While we were shown a bigger picture of getting up to 5X & 7X of growth, the Shark Tank experience has in fact got us huge loss in business and a downfall of almost 10-12X," Patel wrote on Linkedin.
Fit and Flex, a snacking business on Shark Tank India, sought Rs. 1 crore for a 3% ownership in Shark Tank India season 3.
Pathik, the owner, was questioned about his financing needs. Pathik expressed interest in mentorship instead but did not strike a deal with the sharks.
The company recently received a legal notice from another firm, Dorji, providing Darjeeling tea. Sparsh Agarwal, co-founder of Dorji, mentioned on LinkedIn that Sony Pictures Networks India issued a legal notice for using their pitch footage in YouTube videos.
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