Swiss firm’s technology takes on Google, Apple
SWATCH Group said it’s developing an alternative to the IOS and Android operating systems for smartwatches as Switzerland’s largest maker of timepieces vies with Silicon Valley for control of consumers’ wrists.
The company’s Tissot brand would introduce a model around the end of next year that used the Swiss-made system, which would also be able to connect small objects and wearables, Swatch chief executive officer Nick Hayek said this week. The technology would need less battery power and would protect data better.
Switzerland’s four-century-old watch industry has been adjusting to new competition since Apple entered its territory with the Apple Watch in 2015. H
ayek faces the uphill challenge of trying to outsmart Google and Apple, which have fended off would-be rivals to their operation systems in smartphones and watches.
Hayek’s strategy contrasts with that of LVMH watch chief Jeanclaude Biver, who earlier this week unveiled an upgraded TAG Heuer smartwatch the brand developed with Google and Intel.
Competition from smartwatches has hurt low-end timepieces the most, and Hayek has been adding electronic functions into Swatch’s less expensive brands such as Tissot and its namesake timepieces. This month, Swatch said it developed the world’s smallest Bluetooth chip for use in watches and household objects.
Swatch’s approach will work better because it’s trying to “think small” as one of the biggest problems for wearable devices is battery drainage, Hayek said.
“There’s a possibility for wearables to develop as a consumer product, but you have to miniaturise and have an independent operating system,” he said.
“I’m not convinced,” said Luca Solca, an analyst at Exane BNP Paribas who follows the luxury industry. “People use smartwatches expecting to use the same apps they have on their mobiles. A proprietary operating system defeats the object.”
Swatch is willing to supply third parties with the operating system, which has been developed with the Swiss Center for Electronics and Microtechnology, a university specialised in miniaturisation, Hayek said. The company has received about 100 requests for more information, with half coming from smaller Silicon Valley companies that don’t want to be dependent on Android and IOS, he added.
Separately, Tissot has yet to start selling its Smart Touch smartwatch, according to Francois Thiebaud, head of that brand. He said last year that the solar-powered watch would be available that year, and that it would be connectable to Android and Apple smartphones. It would also have functions such as showing the weather and helping the wearer find lost keys.
Separately, Swatch forecast a rebound in US and European markets as it published its annual report.
Hayek said revenue may increase about 7 percent to 9 percent this year. – Bloomberg