RØDE MICROPHONES, LLC

RØDE MICROPHONES, LLC is the U.S. legal entity for RØDE Microphones, a prominent Australian audio technology company. The company is headquartered in Silverwater, Sydney, Australia, and was founded in 1967 as Freedman Electronics, becoming RØDE Microphones with a renewed focus in 1990. RØDE Microphones is a privately held company, forming part of The Freedman Group. The company employs over 800 people globally and its parent company, Freedman Electronics, is valued at over $1.5 billion.

RØDE Microphones designs and manufactures a wide array of audio products, including microphones, headphones, audio interfaces, mixers, and software. Their product lines cater to various applications such as studio recording, live sound, location recording, podcasting, gaming, streaming, filmmaking, and general content creation. Key product offerings include the NT1 series studio microphones, PodMic, Wireless GO and Wireless PRO wireless microphone systems, VideoMic line, and RØDECaster Pro series integrated audio production studios. The company maintains manufacturing facilities in Sydney, Australia.

In terms of patent litigation, RØDE Microphones, LLC acts as an operating company engaged in challenging patent validity. The company is listed as a plaintiff in one tracked case, RØDE MICROPHONES, LLC et al. v. ZAXCOM, INC., before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). This PTAB action involves RØDE Microphones, along with its parent Freedman Electronics Pty Ltd., challenging the validity of patents owned by Zaxcom, Inc., specifically U.S. Patent Nos. 7,929,902 B1 and 10,276,207.

The PTAB proceeding is a defensive maneuver by RØDE, notably referencing prior inter partes reviews (IPRs) and litigation involving Zaxcom and Lectrosonics, Inc. The Freedman Group, RØDE's parent company, acquired Lectrosonics in May 2025. Zaxcom had previously filed a complaint alleging infringement of one of the challenged patents against Lectrosonics. This context indicates that RØDE's PTAB petitions are part of a strategy to address patent assertions impacting companies within its corporate group.