Sonos wins $32.5 Million in Smart-Speaker Patent Case against Google, as ruled by US Jury.

• A San Francisco federal jury has ordered Google to pay $32.5m in damages for infringing on one of Sonos’s patents in its wireless audio devices.
• The case is part of a wider intellectual property dispute between Google and Sonos, which includes other lawsuits in the US, Canada, France, Germany, and the Netherlands.
• The legal battle between the two companies highlights the increasing importance of patents in the tech industry, particularly in the fast-growing market for smart speakers.

In a landmark patent case, a US jury has ruled that tech giant Google must pay smart-speaker maker Sonos $32.5 million for infringing on its patents. The case centered around the technology used in smart speakers, which are becoming increasingly popular in homes worldwide.

Sonos sued Google in 2020, accusing the company of stealing its technology for use in Google’s own line of smart speakers. The case revolved around several specific patents related to networking technology used in smart speakers. Sonos argued that Google had failed to properly license the technology and had instead used it without permission.

The case went to trial in January 2021, with a jury ultimately siding with Sonos. The jury found that Google had indeed infringed on several of Sonos’ patents and awarded the company $32.5 million in damages.

The ruling is a major victory for Sonos, which had argued that Google’s actions had caused significant harm to its business. In a statement after the ruling, Sonos CEO Patrick Spence said that the ruling “vindicates the power of innovation and intellectual property”.

For its part, Google has not yet commented on the ruling. However, the company has denied any wrongdoing throughout the case and has suggested that it may appeal the ruling.

The case highlights the growing importance of smart speakers in the tech world and the potential risks of infringing on patents related to this new technology. As the use of smart speakers continues to grow, it is likely that we will see more patent cases like this one in the years to come.