Following the shut down of SCiO’s Kickstarter page, a Consumer Physics’ representative revealed the page wasn’t removed due to an intellectual property dispute, despite the information stated on the website.
As previously reported, SCiO was described as “the world’s first affordable molecular sensor that fits in the palm of your hand.” It is a tiny spectrometer and allows users to get instant, relevant information about the chemical make-up of just about anything around the user, sent directly to their smartphone. The SCiO Mobile App allows the user to choose a specific SCiO application from the available options. Once the user chooses the app they need, they are ready to scan.
In 2014, SCiO surfaced on Kickstarter and raised $2,762,571. Since then, Consumer Physics has reportedly begun to ship the device but encountered some issues, which caused delays. Dror Sharon, CEO of Consumer Physics previously explained the delays due to an unanticipated design.
“We started to ship units in April 2015, but as we ramped up production we discovered issues – sometimes with our parts, sometimes with our designs.”
SCiO’s Kickstarter situation comes just a couple days after Consumer Physics announced it was shipping more of the devices. The rep confirmed to Crowdfund Insider:
“Despite what Kickstarter’s default page says, there is no intellectual property dispute around SCiO. There is a naming dispute that is being litigated and this the reason that Kickstarter took the SCiO campaign page down. This is solely in regards to using the term ‘SCiO’ in the product name. The sensor technology is not affected in any way.”
The rep also noted that Consumer Physics is already addressing the legal dispute over the name of the sensor in court and fully believes we have every right to use the product name ‘SCiO.’
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