Oura ne Indian wearable brand Ultrahuman par Texas court mein mukadma thok diya hai. Oura ka kehna hai ki Ultrahuman ne unke sensor aur battery technology ki chori ki hai, jisse company ke US expansion par khatra mandra raha hai.
Patent war ki asli wajah
Smart ring market ki badi player, Oura, ab sidhe Indian startup Ultrahuman se takra gayi hai. Texas ki federal court mein file hue is case mein Oura ne aarop lagaya hai ki Ultrahuman ki Ring Pro mein unke patents ka violation hua hai. Khaas kar ke curved battery aur sensor design ko lekar Oura ne claim kiya hai ki yeh unki proprietary technology hai, jisme patent number 12,769,363 bhi shaamil hai.
Kya ho sakta hai impact?
Oura sirf paisa nahi maang rahi, balki wo court se permanent injunction ki maang kar rahi hai. Agar court ne Oura ke favor mein faisla sunaya, toh Ultrahuman ko US market mein apni Ring Pro ki sale band karni pad sakti hai, jo ki unke liye ek bada growth market hai. Is mamle mein Plano-based manufacturer SVTronics ko bhi co-defendant banaya gaya hai.
Startup ke liye tension kyun?
Ultrahuman ne abhi haal hi mein $70 million ki funding uthayi hai, jahan company ki valuation $365 million pohanch gayi thi. Abhi ye startup Qualcomm ke saath milkar AI features par kaam kar raha hai, lekin is tarah ke legal pange cash reserves aur management ka focus dono bigad sakte hain.
Competition ka mahaul
Oura purane khiladi ki tarah market mein agresive hai. Pehle bhi ye Samsung aur RingConn jaise players ke saath legal battle mein reh chuke hain. Jahan kuch cases mein licensing deal ho gayi thi, wahan Ultrahuman ke saath inka rasta thoda alag aur sakht lag raha hai. IDC ke data ke hisaab se smart ring market mein 12.8% growth dikh rahi hai, aur is race mein ab intellectual property (IP) hi asli battleground ban gaya hai.