Samsung has filed a pre-emptive lawsuit against Oura, to claim that its forthcoming Galaxy Ring doesn’t infringe its rival’s patents.
Oura has aggressively sued new competitors to the smart ring market to stop them from gaining a foothold. With the Galaxy Ring due to land in the coming months, Samsung is seeking a declaratory judgment to protect its smart ring from Oura’s litigation.
Best smart rings tested and reviewed
In the filing, Samsung alleges that Oura has a history of suing competitors for infringements of “features common to virtually all smart rings.”
Indeed, in the minutes after the announcement of the Galaxy Ring, Oura sent an unprompted release to a host of outlets, including Wareable, stating:
“With new features released regularly, Oura has the strongest IP portfolio—in both hardware and software—for the smart ring form factor, with 100 granted patents, 270 pending patent applications, and 130+ registered trademarks.”
In court documents, Samsung references this statement as evidence that Oura plans to sue. Just as it’s done with Circular, Ultrahuman and RingConn.
The suit also mentions a CNBC interview with Oura CEO Tom Hale in which the company would “take the action that’s appropriate” against the Galaxy Ring.
Oura’s current claims
Oura has sued rivals for infringements of hardware and design, including the shape and implementation of batteries.
Oura has also claimed that rivals have infringed its patents on how sensor data calculates health metrics. Specifically, energy score and recovery scores that rely on similar inputs like heart rate variability, heart rate, and temperature.
In the claim, Samsung has outlined each of these and explained why the Galaxy Ring does not convene Oura’s patents. With the Galaxy Ring expected to launch in August 2024, it remains to be seen how Oura will respond to Samsung’s legal challenge.
The impact of the lawsuit could have bigger repercussions. If Samsung is successful, then it could be a precedent for other smart ring companies, who are embroiled in litigation with Oura.
It might be a good time to coin the term smart ring wars.
