Sonos wins a round in the legal battle between it and Google. The United States International Trade Commission estimates that the American giant has infringed five patents of its former partner and manufacturer of high-end speakers.
As a result, the importation of certain products from China, where they are produced, to the United States, where they are sold, will be blocked. This ban will come into effect in 60 days. This targets Pixel smartphones and computers, Nest smart speakers or even Chromecast devices.
The technologies involved and recognized as properties of Sonos are configuration to control audio systems, synchronization of multiple speakers, independent volume control of different speakers and stereo pairing of speakers.
No panic on the side of Google
Google should not, however, stop marketing the products in question. “We do not foresee any impact on our ability to import or sell our products”, Google spokesperson José Castaneda told The verge. It must be said that he has already developed workarounds.
But user experience is expected to suffer. Google has posted a notice online informing users about upcoming changes to its Nest voice speakers when used in groups. In particular, it will no longer be possible to adjust the volume of several devices simultaneously.
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Sonos, the multiroom specialist, collaborated with Google from 2013. But Google began to market rival devices from 2015 by continuing to draw inspiration from its technologies. Sonos claims that no less than 100 patents would be affected and is asking for a license agreement. He also maintains two other legal proceedings of this type against Google.
The confrontation is therefore far from over, especially since Google also attacked Sonos in June 2020 and the procedure is still ongoing.
Sources: The New-York Times, The verge