Defendant
11 cases as defendant.
Sony Group Corporation is a Japanese multinational conglomerate founded in 1946 and headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. The publicly-traded company (NYSE: SONY) is a major global enterprise with 113,000 employees as of March 2024 and reported revenue of ¥13.02 trillion for the fiscal year ending in March 2024. Sony's market capitalization was approximately $127 billion as of May 2026.
Sony operates a diverse portfolio of businesses organized into several key segments. The Game & Network Services segment is centered on the PlayStation brand of consoles and its online gaming network. The Pictures and Music segments comprise major film studios (Sony Pictures Entertainment) and one of the largest recorded music companies (Sony Music Group). The Entertainment, Technology & Services segment produces a wide range of consumer and professional electronics, including BRAVIA televisions, Alpha cameras, and audio equipment. The Imaging & Sensing Solutions division is a leading global supplier of CMOS image sensors for products like smartphones and cameras. Sony also has a significant Financial Services division, primarily in Japan.
As a major global operating company, Sony is frequently a target of patent litigation. The provided data shows the company in a defensive posture, with one tracked case as a defendant and none as a plaintiff. This is consistent with the profile of a large technology manufacturer defending itself against patent assertions from other entities. The single case listed is an action brought in the U.S. International Trade Commission, a common venue for patent disputes involving imported goods.
The tracked case is an investigation brought by ONE-E-WAY, INC. at the U.S. International Trade Commission. The dispute involved patents on wireless headphone technology that allows for private listening with minimal interference. In 2017, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit reversed an earlier ITC ruling that had invalidated One-E-Way's patent claims, and the case was sent back to the commission for further proceedings.
Flexiworld Technologies sued Sony Corporation asserting seven patents, including '596. The parties filed a Joint Stipulation to Dismiss with Prejudice under Rule 41(a)(1)(A)(ii), covering all pending claims and counterclaims; the court accepted the dismissal, each party bearing its own costs, expenses, and attorneys' fees. No merits ruling was issued.
Flexiworld Technologies sued Sony in the Eastern District of Texas asserting infringement of wireless output/smart device patents; the Stanford NPE Litigation Database maps US10133527 to this case. The action was dismissed with prejudice by joint stipulation under Rule 41(a)(1)(A)(ii) in May 2025, with no merits ruling. Other litigation summaries list different asserted patent sets that do not include 10133527, creating a conflict as to whether 10133527 remained asserted.
Flexiworld sued Sony, and the NPE Litigation Database lists the '822 patent as one of the patents involved in the case. The case was closed after a joint stipulation dismissing all claims and counterclaims with prejudice.
Flexiworld Technologies asserted U.S. Patent 9,069,510 against Sony Corporation in the Eastern District of Texas. The case was dismissed with prejudice by joint stipulation under Fed. R. Civ. P. 41(a)(1)(A)(ii) on May 29, 2025, with no merits ruling or damages award; the narrative notes the '510 link is probable but not fully verified.
This Inter Partes Review (IPR) proceeding was filed by Sony Group Corporation and other entities against patent owner Greenthread LLC challenging US patent 10734481, and it concluded in a settlement.
Raytheon appealed from the PTAB IPR final decisions concerning the ’678 patent. The Federal Circuit affirmed the Board’s obviousness holdings in a nonprecedential decision issued April 2, 2018.
D. Del. action by DDG and IDT against Sony Corporation et al. in the 2013-12-31 campaign asserting the '547 patent and siblings. Outcome not verified.
Patent infringement suit by Agere against Sony entities. The case produced a 2008 Markman ruling on the '958 'complementary code' limitation and closed in November 2008 without a merits judgment on the '958 patent.
Agere Systems Inc. sued Sony Corporation, Sony Electronics, Inc., and Sony Computer Entertainment America, Inc. in the Eastern District of Texas, Marshall Division. A November 2008 jury verdict found Sony willfully infringed the '730 patent and awarded $18.5 million; Sony was cleared on seven of eight asserted patents due to a prior Lucent license, leaving the '730 patent as the sole patent tried. The case terminated January 6, 2009.
An ITC investigation initiated in 2015. An initial ITC finding of invalidity was reversed by the Federal Circuit on June 12, 2017, which revived the case.
Broadcom Corporation et al. sued Sony Corporation et al. in C.D. Cal.; the case prompted Sony IPR2017-00520, which settled, but the district outcome was not established.