Apple is suing Stereophone inventor and audio maker Koss over a patent lawsuit it recently filed in Waco, Texas, accusing Apple and several audio companies of infringing patents on their wireless headphone technology.
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In the Koss trial, originally traced by Patently Apple, AirPods and Beats wireless headphones are accused of infringing on five patents regarding wireless headphone technology that Koss essentially says it pioneered in the industry. The four patents describe wireless earphones that involve a transceiver circuit, allowing a device to stream audio from a digital audio player, computer, or wireless network.
Koss said Apple was aware of these patents and met several times to discuss their use before deciding not to license the company’s technology. Koss now wants an unspecified amount of compensation for the alleged infringements, “which by law can be no less than a reasonable royalty, along with interests and costs.”
In Apple’s submission filed Aug. 8 in the U.S. District Court for Northern California, however, it claims Koss’s allegations are “baseless.” Moreover, it claims that the lawsuit also breaks a written confidentiality agreement that Koss demanded and Apple finally agreed to in 2017.
According to the agreement, neither Apple nor Koss would use or attempt to communicate [between the parties], if its existence, in a court case other than an administrative as a court going for what purpose. “
Under the terms of the Confidentiality Agreement, while the agreement was in force, Apple could not advise threats from a Koss Court to file unfounded infringement claims or ask a court to declare Apple’s rights and the legal uncertainty it faced. resolved. The Confidentiality Agreement also limited how Apple could disclose and use the existence and content of the discussions. But the agreement also protected Apple – Koss could not later use the fact that Apple had agreed to a conversation with Koss, as the content of the discussion, against Apple in court.
In other words, after Apple agreed to engage in conversations, disclose information and advance some of its legal options, Koss could not use Apple’s participation as a “gotcha” to bring claims in a later lawsuit.
Apple now says this is exactly what Koss did in bringing the lawsuit, making it invalid. In addition to the alleged breach of contract, Apple has also submitted documentary evidence that it says evidence that it did not violate any of the patents filed by Koss in its original lawsuit.
In addition to Apple, other companies involved in the Koss lawsuit include Bose, JLab, Plantronics, and Skullcandy, all of which have Koss patent disputes over in-ear wireless headphone technology that is now widely used. in the audio market.
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