Sonos takes Denon to court for ‘copying’ Play speakers

Sonos has sued investment company D&M Holdings, owner of Denon, in US court. Sonos claims that Denon has unabashedly copied its Play products with its Heos speakers, thereby violating various patents.

In a blog post, Sonos describes his motivation to go to court. The company, which is currently the market leader for Wi-Fi audio products with its wireless Play speakers, claims that Denon copies its products. Denon’s Heos speakers would also be positioned in an almost identical way on the consumer market. For example, Denon has the Heos 3, Heos 5 and Heos 7 together with the Heos Amp and Heos Link in its portfolio, as opposed to the Play:1, Play:3, Play:5, Connect and Connect:Amp from Sonos.

Sonos claims that it is not after royalties or license fees; the company says it wants Denon and other companies to make distinctive products. Sonos also indicates that it wants to sit down with Denon to come to a solution, but has nevertheless taken the matter to court. Sonos seems to want to aim for an early settlement. Denon has not yet commented on the matter.

It is unclear whether Sonos’ case stands a chance in court; the website WhatHifi notes that although Denon’s Heos product line and price level are very similar to the Play series, the wireless speaker systems do have distinctive features. For example, the Heos hardware uses its own WiFi network, while Sonos basically applies mesh networking, although this can be changed with new firmware versions.