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Google sued over allegedly infringing on patents from defunct wearable company Jawbone

Jawbone, which went out of business in 2017, has just risen from the dead, but not for anything good. A mysterious party is now using Jawbone patents to launch lawsuits against Google and Apple.

Bloomberg reports that “Jawbone Innovations LLC” has filed a lawsuit against Google. The broad lawsuit covers “all versions and variants of Google smartphones […] tablets and/or notebooks […], earbuds […] smart home devices […] and other Android Devices.” Apple was hit with a similar suit as our colleagues at 9to5Mac covered, and the same LLC previously targeted Samsung with a similar suit earlier this year.

In the suit, a preliminary injunction has been demanded to stop both Google and Apple from selling the products that infringe on Jawbone patents. The patents in question revolve around limiting background noise, a tech that was developed early on by Jawbone under US military contracts.

Google, in response to the allegations, said: “We dispute the claims, and will defend ourselves vigorously.”

Notably, this “Jawbone Innovations LLC” appears to have no direct connection to the original wearable company that shut its doors in 2017 following a loss in a lawsuit with Fitbit. The LLC also has no phone number listed and its lawyers were not responsive. The case is also being put forth in Waco, Texas, which Bloomberg points out is a district that’s notorious for its patent-friendly judges and juries.

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