Luxury fashion giant LVMH sued over NFT patent tech for watches

A company selling smartwatch face designs through non-fungible tokens has sued LVMH, accusing the luxury fashion conglomerate of patent infringement.

In a March 10 complaint filed to a Texas federal court, Watch Skins Corporation alleged that LVMH misappropriated its “pioneering NFT display technology.”

Watch Skins claimed it developed a unique system that allows users to display verified NFT artworks on smartwatches and holds multiple patents related to the technology.

It claimed that a smartwatch from the LVMH-owned watch brand TAG Heuer and other products from the conglomerate’s brands unlawfully used NFT display technology that was based on three patents that Watch Skins owned.

The TAG Heuer Connected Calibre E4 (pictured) was one of the watches Watch Skins claimed infringed on its patent. Source: TAG Heuer

LVMH is a multinational holding company that owns dozens of well-known luxury goods brands, including Louis Vuitton, Givenchy, TAG Heuer, Tiffany, Christian Dior, Hennessy and the champagne brand Moët & Chandon.

Watch Skins said its first patent covers a system that verifies NFT ownership before allowing it to be displayed on a watch face, the second one covers a system where an NFT must be verified through a blockchain wallet before being displayed on a smartwatch, and the third focuses on the retrieval and display of customized watch faces based on NFT ownership.

It claimed TAG Heuer encouraged customers to infringe on the patents by providing instructions on how to use its NFT display features.

“The watch allows the NFT to be displayed if owned by the user’s crypto wallet [and] connects to a user’s crypto wallet to guarantee authenticity of works displayed,” the complaint explained. 

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Watch Skins requested a jury trial and compensation for lost profits and royalties due to infringement and a court order preventing LVMH from further use of the patented technology.

The company announced the launch of the world’s first blockchain NFT watch face marketplace at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in 2020. 

The mobile app gives consumers “the ability to purchase authentic, licensed smartwatch faces from their favorite brands,” Watch Skins stated at the time.

Cointelegraph has contacted LVMH for comment.

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