In the small world of connected rings, Oura is known to be particularly litigious. In other words, the manufacturer has an easy complaint to protect its technologies; but this time, Samsung took it at its own game by launching a preventive procedure against its future competitor.
Samsung will enter the connected ring market this summer with the Galaxy Ring, announced at the start of the year and which should be detailed next month at the same time as the manufacturer’s new folding smartphones. This fanfare arrival of the Korean giant will shake up a sector where several manufacturers are fighting to find a place in the sun.
Read Samsung Galaxy Ring: the price of the ring and the subscription leak
Among these actors, we include Oura, a pioneer in the sector, and which is known in the industry for filing complaints quite easily against its competitors: Ultrahuman, Circular and RingConn were targeted by the manufacturer. Samsung did not wait, filing a complaint against Oura even before the Galaxy Ring was officially marketed!
Samsung takes the lead against Oura
Samsung notes in its suit that Oura has a history of suing rivals to protect patents covering features “ common to virtually all connected rings “. This is particularly the case for sensors, batteries or even electronics and the scores calculated based on the metrics collected by the rings.
Samsung is therefore anticipating a complaint from Oura, which will not be long in coming: the manufacturer of the rings of the same name has not failed to remind several publications of the “power” of its intellectual property. The company is responsible for around a hundred patents and more than 130 registered trademarks. Not to mention the approximately 270 patent applications pending.
This hype did not fall on deaf ears: Samsung therefore preferred to take the lead. Perhaps this will lead to an amicable agreement between the two companies, although it is likely that Oura will want to defend its positions dearly.
As noted The Verge, Samsung’s complaint also provides additional information regarding the Galaxy Ring. We learn that the design was finalized last month, that volume production should begin in mid-June, and that the product will be available in the United States (and certainly elsewhere in the world) in August.
Read Oura Ring 3 vs Circular Ring Slim: which connected ring to choose?
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