This article was published on March 10, 2014

Sonos will forward-publish its patent applications before they are public to inspire other inventions


Sonos will forward-publish its patent applications before they are public to inspire other inventions

Sonos today announced plans to “forward-publish” its patent applications well before they are available to the public, with the hope they will help other individuals and companies looking to invent technologies that improve the overall music experience. The electronics company says it is making one exception for its new rule: applications that cover inventions not yet in publicly available Sonos products.

Here is the company’s reasoning for the policy change:

We know that others can – and will – benefit from the time, energy and investment we have put into our patented inventions, not to mention our products themselves. And we welcome that learning, but with an honorable caveat: use it to create differentiated products, rather than merely incorporating or copying our invention without our permission. While we recognize the existence of abuses in the marketplace that cross this ethical line, we still believe patents can and should be used for the benefit of all – by helping accelerate innovation.

You can view all of Sonos’ published US patents and patent applications at the link below. Eventually, that page will also include its forward-published applications.

Sonos Patents

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See also – How Sonos completely changed my music listening habits and Sonos Play:1 review: Rich sound at a humble price

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