With two lawsuits, Google is retaliating against Sonos by claiming that the wireless speaker manufacturer is infringing on a number of its patents related to smart speakers and voice control technology. It’s the latest salvo in a legal struggle over wireless speakers that has so far involved several Sonos lawsuits, one Google lawsuit, and a judgement in favor of Sonos that resulted in the removal of functionality from Google’s products.
Seven more patents are allegedly infringed upon according to these new cases. In one lawsuit, wireless charging and hotword recognition are the main topics, and in the other, it’s how a collection of speakers decides which one should respond to voice input.
The lawsuits are being brought, according to Google spokesperson José Castaeda, to “protect our technology and challenge Sonos’s apparent, continuous infringement of our patents.” Sonos has “launched an aggressive and deceptive campaign against our products, at the detriment of our joint customers,” according to Castaeda.
Both cases were submitted this morning to the Northern District of California’s federal district court. According to Castaeda, Google intends to file comparable cases with the US International Trade Commission in the upcoming days with the goal of preventing the importation of any Sonos products that violate its intellectual property.
Read more about this at theverge.com
