Google wins picture frame dispute in jury trial

Google’s smart home system Nest does not infringe Profectus Technology’s digital picture frame patent, a Texas jury has ruled.

In a verdict filed on Wednesday 6 October, a US District Court for the Western District of Texas jury ruled that Google did not infringe US Patent 6,975,308 and held that the asserted claims of the patent were invalid.

The patent, which expired in February 2020, relates to a “stand-alone and mountable picture display for displaying still digital pictures”. Profectus claimed that Google infringes claims 1-9, 12, 29, and 30 of the patent.

Google’s Nest Hub and Nest Hub Max are smart home devices that can also display pictures and play music.

Parts of the patent were found to be invalid after Google had identified several other patents, including one owned by Sony, that predated the Profectus patent, according to Reuters.

Profectus filed the complaint against Google with the Waco court on February 10, 2020, a day before the anticipated expiration of the patent, according to Google patents.

Google has been approached for comment.

Case background

Profectus has litigated the ‘308 patent against other tech giants, including Motorola, Apple, Samsung, and Dell.

Profectus filed its suit against Motorola in 2011, alleging that the tech company infringed on the ‘308 patent. The suit was later consolidated into a parallel infringement case against Huawei.

Google later acquired Motorola Mobility in 2011, which Profectus held as evidence that it knew of the ‘308 patent prior to creating the Nest.

In 2016, the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled in a 2-1 decision that Apple, Samsung, and Dell did not infringe on the digital picture frame patent.

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