Google has been hit with a $32.5 million penalty by a California federal jury for infringing on a patent held by Sonos, a leading audio technology company. The jury determined that Google had violated Sonos’ patent related to grouping speakers to play audio simultaneously, a feature that Google has been incorporating into its products for years.
US District Judge William Alsup had previously ruled that early versions of Google products like Chromecast Audio and Google Home infringed on Sonos’ patent. The recent trial focused on whether the newer, revamped Google products also violated the patent. The jury sided with Sonos on this matter but concluded that a second patent, which pertains to controlling devices using a smartphone or other device, was not infringed upon. The jury found that Sonos had not provided sufficient evidence to demonstrate that the Google Home app violated that particular patent. This decision comes after four other patent infringement claims filed by Sonos were dismissed.
