EUIPO ‘Authentic View’ Blockchain Enters Promotion Phase

The European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) has completed two pilot projects to test its ‘Authentic View’ blockchain infrastructure, which is designed to combat counterfeiting.

The parties involved in the pilots were two rights holders (Endstate and Prada Group), a transport and logistic operator (JAS), and officials from the Dutch and Italian customs.

In addition, the Aura Blockchain Consortium, a non-profit organisation offering blockchainagnostic solutions exclusively to luxury brands, was involved in one of the pilots. Aura’s digital product passport solution has been implemented in real-world environments to verify product authenticity at customs checkpoints. Notable implementations include:

• Fashion brand Tod’s has integrated Aura’s blockchain technology and NFC tags into its custom Di Bag line and My Gommino shoes.
• Travel bag makers Harper Collective and MCM have introduced a luggage line made from recycled ocean plastic. Each piece includes a blockchain-linked NFC chip.

However, whereas Aura is a private consortium tailored to luxury goods, Authentic View was developed by EUIPO as an open, neutral infrastructure for any brand, customs authority, or enforcement body to verify product authenticity. Indeed, the infrastructure ties into official trademark registries and uses verifiable credentials that can be checked by customs, police, or consumers, through scanning a unique identifier attached to the product.