Sonos Asks ITC to Merge 2 Google Complaints Into One

The International Trade Commission should consolidate into a single probe the Tariff Act Section 337 investigations that result from Google’s two complaints alleging that Sonos audio players infringe seven Google patents, requested Sonos in a filing received Tuesday and posted Wednesday in docket 337-3634. The ITC alternatively should authorize the chief administrative law judge to “consolidate the resulting investigations” if and when they're instituted, said Sonos. “There is significant overlap” between the two complaints, “such that consolidation at this early stage would streamline the litigation and conserve party and Commission resources,” it said. The two complaints “share commonalities across every criteria” the ITC considers “when assessing potential consolidation,” including the parties involved, the accused technology, the patented subject matter and the legal issues at play, said Sonos. Google, in the two complaints, seeks cease and desist and limited exclusion orders on Sonos audio players with Sonos Voice Control, plus those that support wired or wireless charging or the "commissioning of devices into a system via short-range transmissions" (see 2208100003).