Our approach - Watch Certificate™

The luxury sector has always faced major challenges and has always been a source of envy.

Historically, counterfeiting and, more recently, the second-hand market are challenges that cannot be ignored by brands and public authorities.

Counterfeit watches and jewellery flood the market every year. 1.9 billion per year, due to the presence of counterfeits in the European market in particular.

The second-hand market is expected to be worth almost $42 billion by 2023.

The evolution of the luxury sector over the last thirty years, with its large groups that concentrate many watchmaking houses, its niche players, its authorised or unauthorised resellers, its specialised second-hand marketplaces and its reselling collectors, all make it difficult, if not impossible, to harmonise practices in the fight against these scourges.

As well as depriving genuine market players of market share, counterfeiting seriously damages the image of brands and dealers.

In view of these observations, it seemed obvious to us that the computer technology

This technology should have all the following characteristics:
- Objectivity and transparency
- Security
- No central control body

Technology

Agnostic in its approach and convinced of a possible standardisation of its implementation for the watchmaking sector, the Watch Certificate™ team has chosen an open and non-proprietary technology based on the Ethereum Blockchain . Read more.

Three years of research and development were required to implement the Watch Certificate™.

This now guarantees its owner information:
- Authentic, objective and certified
- Infallible and inalienable
- Anonymous and indelible

This Blockchain technology allows the owner of the certificate alone to have access to it and to keep a digital duplicate of his or her timepiece throughout its life.

The WatchCertificate™ technology also allows for many additional services such as transfer of ownership, insurance, theft reporting (new services will be offered soon).

The "Transparency by design" concept

The Watch Certificate™ introduces the concept of "Transparency by design" to the watchmaking world.

The concept of "Transparency by design" aims to ensure that data integrity protection is integrated into new technological and commercial applications from the very beginning. For each new application, product, or service processing data whose integrity must be guaranteed, companies and other data controllers should offer their users or customers the highest possible level of guarantee on this data.

Data concerned: any data whose omission or modification may have an impact on the resulting transaction. For example, in watchmaking in the context of a transaction on the second-hand market: omitting to mention that a dial of Rolex Submariner 5513 has been relit would have an upward impact on its sale price.

Intentional or not: The lack of transparency may be intentional, linked to negligence, or due to a lack of knowledge and good faith. The principle of "Transparency by design" as applied by the Watch Certificate™ aims to protect the integrity of data by making their production channel more efficient and secure.

Ensuring data integrity is the ability to guarantee the completeness, accuracy, correctness, and validity of data throughout its life cycle. Neglecting to address "Transparency" issues can have serious consequences for companies, such as lawsuits, loss of market share, or damage to brand image.

Conversely, taking these issues into account can improve brand reputation, customer confidence, and ultimately loyalty.
The concept of "Transparency by Design" is closely linked to the concept of "Transparency by Default", according to which every company processing sensitive data must guarantee the highest possible level of protection of its integrity by default.

FREQUENT QUESTIONS

Why is it forgery-proof?

The information is recorded in several indelible registers - this is the Blockchain principle.
The information is decentralized: it is recorded in more than 10,000 different registers. Today, it is almost impossible to hack into such a large number of different registers.

Why is it anonymous?

Only the fingerprint of the data is in the Blockchain, not the data itself to ensure confidentiality.
The Watch Certificate™ uses the Blockchain as proof of integrity, but never stores sensitive information in it.

Why is it good for life?

This registration is perennial, it does not depend on our company, it is therefore directly verifiable by the owner via third-party sites. When the Watch Certificate™ is generated, its owner receives the proof of registration in the Blockchain as well as a link to verify it. This registration is totally independent of the watchcertificate.com website.

What is the Blockchain?

Blockchain - a technology for storing and transmitting information with a decentralized infrastructure.
An account book, or giant spreadsheet in which each interested party enters the data they want and to which everyone has access. For more information

Why is the Blockchain synonymous with trust?

Until today, no system could guarantee the history of a watch through time and its successive owners, information is lost over time.
But thanks to the emergence of the Blockchain it is now possible to create the "digital double" of each watch, which is totally secure, anonymous, and unalterable. It accurately displays the characteristics and history of the watch.
This is the guarantee that the system cannot experience censorship, breakdowns, fraud, or interference from a third party.

Why is it traceable?

This digital history is therefore unalterable and guarantees that events are preserved over time. Our technology ensures that each watch has a unique secure identifier that is valid for life.

Why Ethereum?

The technology behind Ethereum is in short similar to that used by Bitcoin: it consists of individual computers that "participate" in a single global public database, shared by all.
Ethereum is a proven and recognized technology based on the Blockchain that allows building and deploying decentralized applications.

To learn more: ethereum-france and Ethereum on Wikipedia