Samsung sued for allegedly copying smartwatch face designs

Samsung has been sued by watchmaker Swatch after it claimed that the tech firm has copied its smartwatch face desig
Updated 27 Feb, 2019

Samsung has been sued by watchmaker Swatch after it claimed that the tech firm has copied its smartwatch face designs.

Smartphone maker Samsung is under fire as Swiss watchmaker Swatch Group that includes brands like Omega and Swatch, has filed a complaint against it, accusing Samsung of making downloadable watch faces available for some of its watches that infringe in Swatch trademarks, reported Reuters.

The complaint, which was filed in US District Court for the Southern District of New York, has specifically named Samsung’s Gear Sport, Gear G3 Classic and Frontier smartwatches. The watchmaker has demanded over $100 million in damages and a trial over the issue.

Swatch claimed that over 30 of Samsung’s watch faces were ‘identical or virtually identical’ to trademarks it already owned. The complaint accuses Samsung of unfair business practices and that the copied designs will mislead customers to believe that Samsung and Swatch had a deal going on, wrote The Verge.

The complaint further states that these Samsung watch faces in questions are available in Galaxy Apps store for download and are designed by third-party developers, though Samsung still pockets a portion of the revenue.

A Swatch spokesperson said, “The issue at the center of it is a blatant, willful and international violation of our trademarks by Samsung. The affected brands are worth billion. Ouamsung gear G3 classic

r claim for compensation? Triple digits in millions.” However, Samsung has declined to comment so far.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2019

Read Comments