⚖ Oral Arguments, with Context

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Google LLC v. Sonos, Inc. — Fed. Cir. (argued September 11, 2026)

No. 25-1346 Argued September 11, 2026 Published September 13, 2026

The Federal Circuit hears Google's appeal from a patent suit it filed against Sonos in 2020. Google brought five patent claims against Sonos speakers and apps. The other four had been resolved by final judgment; this appeal concerns U.S. Patent 7,899,187. It describes adding devices to a digital-rights domain tied to one account, with a private key all devices use to access protected content. Google says a Sonos household of connected speakers, controlled through its app and playing protected music in sync, meets those requirements. The district court ended the claim without a trial, granting Sonos summary judgment on Google's encryption and authentication theories. Google says the judge read utilized, private key, and domain of devices too narrowly. Sonos says each claimed device must itself use the private key cryptographically, and that Google's expert left no factual dispute for trial.

Google LLC v. Sonos, Inc. (No. 25-1346) — U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, argued September 11, 2026.

Sources
Argument audio — U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (public domain, 17 U.S.C. § 105):https://www.cafc.uscourts.gov/oral-arguments/25-1346_09112026.mp3
Argument listing — U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit:https://www.cafc.uscourts.gov/home/oral-argument/listen-to-oral-arguments/
September 2026 argument calendar — U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit:https://www.cafc.uscourts.gov/wp-content/uploads/OralArguments/PublicCalendar-September2026.pdf
Google's filed patent-infringement complaint:https://www.digitalmusicnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/Google-v-Sonos-countersuit.pdf
U.S. Patent 7,899,187 — Google Patents:https://patents.google.com/patent/US7899187B2/en
Final judgment and case record — N.D. California record reproduced by PatSnap:https://www.patsnap.com/resources/blog/litigation/google-llc-v-sonos-inc-multi-patent-smart-speaker-dispute-patsnap/
Early district-court order — GovInfo:https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCOURTS-cand-3_20-cv-03845/pdf/USCOURTS-cand-3_20-cv-03845-0.pdf
Federal Circuit appellate docket — Justia:https://dockets.justia.com/docket/circuit-courts/cafc/25-1346
Claim-differentiation doctrine — U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit:https://www.cafc.uscourts.gov/opinions-orders/22-1750.OPINION.2-7-2024_2266326.pdf
Google–Sonos counsel listing — U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit:https://www.cafc.uscourts.gov/opinions-orders/24-1097.OPINION.8-28-2025_2565220.pdf
Nathan Kelley — Perkins Coie:https://perkinscoie.com/news/general-news/nathan-kelley-and-theresa-nguyen-mentioned-law360-fitbit-gets-fed-circ-back-ptab
Elizabeth Moulton — Orrick:https://www.orrick.com/en/People/5/B/0/Elizabeth-Moulton

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