Lenbrook to Pay Sonos BluOS Royalties in Multiyear Deal, Settling Patent Fight
Lenbrook Industries agreed to a multiyear licensing deal with Sonos, they said Thursday. Lenbrook will pay royalties for a license to Sonos’ patents for all BluOS enabled devices.
Sonos alleged in a 2019 patent infringement complaint in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles that (see 1906240040) that Lenbrook’s status as a Sonos distributor in Canada in 2007-2008 gave it “intimate knowledge” of Sonos’ wireless audio products and technology more than six years before introduction of Lenbrook’s Bluesound wireless audio products. Sonos claimed the Bluesound system “competed directly” with Sonos for wireless audio product sales, citing articles from tech enthusiast magazines positioning Lenbrook’s system as a potential “Sonos Killer.” Sonos alleged that “instead of innovating to compete fairly with Sonos,” Bluesound “merely copied Sonos.”
Chief Legal Officer Eddie Lazarus said “Sonos is a company founded on innovation -- it is a part of our DNA.” Sonos welcomes and encourages competition, said Lazarus, and wants "to make sure that all companies entering this space recognize the strength of our IP and provide appropriate compensation. Today’s settlement reflects those principles.” Lazarus for a time worked at the FCC and also at Tribune.
“Lenbrook and the brands we own have been in the premium consumer audio space for almost 50 years," said Chief Technology Officer Greg Stidsen. "We have partnered with more than 20 innovative technology companies in our quest to offer the market the highest performance and most advanced audio solutions possible. We are pleased that we have been able to reach an agreement with Sonos.”
The settlement is "the second successful litigation effort to protect our IP and the foundational innovation that exists in our products today," a Sonos spokesperson emailed Thursday. It's a reference to the company's defense of three foundational patents against Denon in 2018 (see 1805180044). Sonos remains embroiled in a bitter patent fight with Google in federal court and at the International Trade Commission.