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Music System Sales Sagging, Sonos Un-Leashes Lawyers to Raise Revenues

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BREAKING NEWS

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Strata-gee reported just yesterday that Sonos, Inc. has sued Lenbrook Industries Ltd. & Lenbrook America – the maker & marketer of Bluesound – for patent infringement. Undoubtedly emboldened by their near-complete victory over Denon’s HEOS brand a little over a year ago, Sonos appears to have targeted Lenbrook to be next in line.

However, Strata-gee has learned that Lenbrook is not the only company targeted for such potential actions by Sonos. There are more – perhaps many more – in our industry lined up for this “hit” parade.

See what Strata-gee learned about Sono’s legal strategy…

[Read more…] about Music System Sales Sagging, Sonos Un-Leashes Lawyers to Raise Revenues

Denon Defeated, Sonos Sics Lawyers on Lenbrook

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On Thursday last week, Sonos, Inc. (NASDAQ: SONO) filed another patent infringement lawsuit, this time against Lenbrook Industries Limited and Lenbrook America Corp. At issue here is Lenbrook’s Bluesound brand launched back in 2013 to great fanfare as Strata-gee reported on at the time…and also discussed here…and which Sonos claims infringes on multiple Sonos patents.

See more on the Sonos suit vs Lenbrook…

[Read more…] about Denon Defeated, Sonos Sics Lawyers on Lenbrook

SEC Rejects Monster Cryptocurrency Filing, Notes ‘Serious Deficiencies’

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Monster Changes: Prez/COO & Auditor are Terminated, Three-Man Board is Now Only One

Photo of Noel LeeIn June, after significant outreach by many Strata-gee readers, we posted our take on the Monster Products, Inc. (Monster) S-1 filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in which Monster sought to launch its own Monster Money cryptocurrency in a major shift in the company’s direction. This SEC filing by Monster was at the end of May, and our story [see: Is Monster Money a Massive Mistake?] was posted June 13th.

We have just discovered that days after our story appeared, Monster received an SEC staff letter dated June 15th titled “SERIOUS DEFICIENCIES.” But that’s not all we discovered…

See more on Monster’s S-1 rejection and other major news we’ve uncovered… [Read more…] about SEC Rejects Monster Cryptocurrency Filing, Notes ‘Serious Deficiencies’

EU Hits Pioneer, D&M, Philips & Asus with Fines for Price Fixing

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Asus logoThe European Commission, the EU’s antitrust regulatory unit, after a 17-month investigation of online price fixing and other illegal anti-competitive practices has levied a fine of €111.2 million ($130 million) against four prominent consumer electronics brands, including Pioneer Corp., D&M Holdings Inc. of Japan, Koninklijke Philips NV of the Netherlands, and AsusTek Computer, Inc. of Taiwan. The companies were alleged to have imposed fixed or minimum online prices for their products.

See more on this strong action by European regulators… [Read more…] about EU Hits Pioneer, D&M, Philips & Asus with Fines for Price Fixing

Sonos v. HEOS – War is Over, Peace Has Come

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hippie family w/peace signOn Friday last week, we learned that Sonos and D&M Holdings have settled their litigation, first begun in October 2014. Although the terms of the settlement are confidential, all actions taken by each party are now moot.

It is likely that the parties now enjoy some form of licensing arrangement that put all adversarial issues behind them.

See more on what we know about the end of the Sonos and D&M patent war… [Read more…] about Sonos v. HEOS – War is Over, Peace Has Come

Should the U.S. Government Regulate Tech?

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Axios logoWhen it comes to politics in today’s world, it is an understatement to suggest that we live in divided times. Although our founding fathers imagined passionate (but healthy) debate leading to the best possible compromise solutions – today, it seems as though our representatives are more likely to throw a hand-grenade than an idea to the other side of the aisle. But recently, a new study has come out to suggest that an issue has arisen that has brought Americans together – and it spells trouble for the tech industry.

See what a survey suggests needs to happen to the tech industry… [Read more…] about Should the U.S. Government Regulate Tech?

Polls: Facebook Faces a Major Trust Crisis

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Stunning Reversal for Once-Loved FANG Brand

Facebook finds themselves square in the middle of a political and public relations fire storm, as news of the firms connection to Cambridge Analytica and the harvesting of the personal data on at least 50 million Facebook users, including perhaps you and I, have recently received a lot of news coverage. Now word comes via two new polls that the company’s brand has taken a serious hit in the eyes of their users and former fans.

See more on these latest polls about Facebook from Reuters/Ipsos… [Read more…] about Polls: Facebook Faces a Major Trust Crisis

Far From Legally Dead, Monster Slugs Back at Beats

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Beats Gets More Awarded; But Monster Wins a Key Ruling Too

Photo of Noel LeeWhen we last visited this legal clash of the titans, a jury had just found that Monster must pay Beats nearly $8 million to reimburse them for the legal expenses in fighting the lawsuit that Monster had brought against them in 2015. Now, we have learned that the judge in that case has increased the judgment with an additional “directed” verdict. And in the matter of a separate case, Beats vs. Monster filed late last year, Monster has filed a countersuit and won a key ruling.

This Beats and Monster slugfest goes on… [Read more…] about Far From Legally Dead, Monster Slugs Back at Beats

Geek Squad: Nerdy Repair Man or Proxy FBI Agent?

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Photo of Geek Squad GeekAh…those geeks on Best Buy’s Geek Squad. They’re so cute aren’t they? With their little white shirts, clip-on black ties, and nerdy glasses taped on the nose bridge. You just know that when you give them your misbehaving computer, they’re going to get right to fixing it. But would you hand your computer over to a member of the Geek Squad if you knew he was acting as a kind of paid FBI agent by proxy, one who intends to scour your hard drive and look through your files to find anything possibly compromising to hand over to the FBI…and collect a bounty? Or would you choose a different repair center, one that simply focuses on repairing your computer?

Yes, some Geek Squad members are paid informants for the FBI… [Read more…] about Geek Squad: Nerdy Repair Man or Proxy FBI Agent?

In Battle with Sonos, D&M Takes Yet Another Blow

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Sonos Seeks Permanent Injunction Against Infringing Products

HEOS logoThe battle rages on between D&M Holdings and Sonos over the patent infringement lawsuit brought by Sonos in 2014 against the HEOS by Denon line, and in which Sonos won the first set of their claims in a bellwether trial that concluded this past December. In retaliation for the Sonos lawsuit, D&M Holdings filed a countersuit that is now heating up, and in which they just lost a major decision from Judge Richard G. Andrews.

See more on D&M’s loss in this ongoing matter… [Read more…] about In Battle with Sonos, D&M Takes Yet Another Blow