Samsung is not waiting for Oura to file any lawsuits over patent claims regarding its future smart ring. Instead, the Korean company has preemptively filed its own lawsuit against Oura, seeking a "declaratory judgment" and claiming that the Galaxy Ring does not infringe on 5 Oura patents.
The lawsuit alleges that Oura has a habit of filing patent lawsuits against competitors based on "features common to virtually all smart rings." In particular, the lawsuit references sensors, electronics, batteries, and assessments based on data collected from sensors. The lawsuit lists instances where Oura has sued competitors such as Ultrahuman, Circular, and RingConn, sometimes even before they entered the US market.
For these reasons, Samsung expects to become the next target for an Oura lawsuit. Shortly after the announcement of the Galaxy Ring, Oura sent an unscheduled statement to many publishers, touting the strength of its intellectual property portfolio and noting that it has "100 issued patents, 270 patent applications pending, and over 130 registered trademarks." The lawsuit also quotes an interview with Oura CEO Tom Hale on CNBC, where he said the company will closely monitor the Samsung Galaxy Ring and "take appropriate action." Samsung continues to cite several other instances where Hale and other Oura executives touted the strength of the company's intellectual property portfolio – and the fact that it is ready to take action to protect its patents.
Oura has not yet commented on this lawsuit.
The lawsuit also contains several interesting facts about the future Galaxy Ring device. It is noted that hardware development was completed in mid-May, mass production is planned for mid-June, and it is expected to be released in the US "around August of this year." The lawsuit also includes a screenshot of the Samsung Health app showing the Energy Score feature based on metrics such as sleep, activity, heart rate, and heart rate variability.
Source: The Verge
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