Online Retailers Duke It Out over Virtual Try-On Program

Online eyewear retailer, Ditto.com, announced today that it will defend itself against a patent infringement lawsuit filed by a competitor who is using a recently purchased patent to seek an injunction on Ditto’s 3D virtual try-on technology for eyewear. The lawsuit (Case No. 2:13-cv-00145) was filed in the District of Utah by 1-800-Contacts, whose division Glasses.com, directly competes with Ditto. 1-800-Contacts is a division of managed care giant, WellPoint. Jonathan Coon, cofounder and CEO of 1-800-Contacts, tried Ditto's virtual fitting technology soon after the launch of DITTO’s website in April 2012, according to Ditto’s press release. Soon thereafter, in May 2012, 1-800-Contacts moved to acquire rights to a patent, which it’s now using to sue Ditto (Case No. 2:13-cv-00145). Read more.