Nope, that's Midnight's Edge/Doug Fitz nonsense.As I understand it the makers of DISCO aren’t allowed to make the show look like proper prime timeline Trek just as kelvinverse movies aren’t allowed to look like that either. The tech, uniforms, Klingons etc must look different as the contract states it. We are unlikely to see a constitution class ship, interior or exterior, on discovery at all. Also the look is different for merchandising purposed as well.
The show looks different because the powers that be decided to give the show a new look. And yes, merchandising likely was a factor. More people will buy a Discovery-style Enterprise than a re-release of an Enterprise they already have a half dozen models of.