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Commitments and Contingencies
 12 Months Ended
Sep. 28, 2024
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]  
Commitments and Contingencies Commitments and Contingencies
Commitments to suppliers
The Company utilizes contract manufacturers to build its products. These contract manufacturers acquire components and build products based on demand forecast information the Company supplies, which typically covers twelve months. Consistent with industry practice, the Company acquires inventories from such manufacturers through blanket purchase orders which are based on
projected demand information and availability of goods. Such purchase commitments typically cover the Company's forecasted product and manufacturing requirements for periods that range a number of months. In certain instances, these agreements allow the Company the option to cancel, reschedule, and/or adjust our requirements based on its business needs for a period of time before the order is due to be fulfilled. The Company's purchase orders typically are not cancellable in the event of a demand plan change or other circumstances, such as where the supplier has procured unique, Sonos-specific designs, and/or specific non-cancellable, non-returnable components based on our provided forecasts.
As of September 28, 2024, the Company's open purchase orders to contract manufacturers for finished goods were approximately $151 million, the majority of which are expected to be paid in the next six months. As of September 28, 2024, the Company's expected commitments to suppliers for components were in the range of $160 million to $180 million, the majority of which is expected to be paid and/or utilized by our contract manufacturers in building finished goods within the next two years. The expected commitments are subject to change as a result of fluctuations in the demand forecast, as well as ongoing negotiations with contract manufacturers and suppliers. These commitments are related to components that can be specific to Sonos products and comprised 1) indirect obligations to third-party manufacturers and suppliers, 2) the inventory owned by contract manufacturers procured to manufacture Sonos products, and 3) purchase commitments made by contract manufacturers to their upstream suppliers.
Legal Proceedings
From time to time, the Company is involved in legal proceedings in the ordinary course of business, including claims relating to employee relations, business practices, and patent infringement. Litigation can be expensive and disruptive to normal business operations. Moreover, the results of complex legal proceedings are difficult to predict, and the Company’s view of these matters may change in the future as the litigation and events related thereto unfold. The Company expenses legal fees as incurred. The Company records a provision for contingent losses when it is both probable that a liability has been incurred and the amount of the loss can be reasonably estimated. An unfavorable outcome to any legal matter, if material, could have an adverse effect on the Company’s operations or its financial position, liquidity or results of operations.
The Company’s Lawsuits Against Google:
On January 7, 2020, the Company filed a complaint with the U.S. International Trade Commission ("ITC") against Alphabet Inc. ("Alphabet") and Google LLC ("Google") and a counterpart lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California against Google. The complaint and lawsuit each allege infringement by Alphabet and Google of certain Sonos patents related to its smart speakers and related technology. The counterpart lawsuit was stayed pending completion of the ITC investigation and appeal thereof. The ITC concluded its investigation in January 2022, finding all five of the Company’s asserted patents to be valid and infringed by Google, and further finding that one redesign per patent proposed by Google would avoid infringement. The ITC issued a limited exclusion order and a cease-and-desist order with respect to Google’s infringing products. The Company and Google each appealed the ITC’s determination, which was upheld in its entirety by a panel of the appeals court. Google's petition for rehearing by the full appeals court has been denied. The deadline for Google to file a Supreme Court petition for certiorari is December 2024. The stay in the counterpart lawsuit has been lifted as to certain patents that are not subject to review by the Supreme Court. No trial date has been set.
On September 29, 2020, the Company filed another lawsuit against Google alleging infringement of additional Sonos patents and seeking monetary damages and other non-monetary relief. A jury trial was held in May 2023, which found one Sonos patent to be infringed and another Sonos patent not infringed, and returned an award of $32.5 million based on a royalty rate of $2.30 per infringing unit. After trial, the court held Sonos’ patents unenforceable under the doctrine of prosecution laches and invalid as a result of amendments made during prosecution. The Company is appealing the ruling.
Google’s Lawsuits Against the Company:
On June 11, 2020, Google filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California against the Company alleging infringement by the Company of five Google patents and seeking monetary damages and other non-monetary relief. All five of these patents have since been found invalid or non-infringed by the Court or by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office or have been withdrawn from the case by Google. Google’s deadline to appeal will run from when the Court enters final judgment, which is expected in November 2024.
On June 12, 2020, Google filed lawsuits in District Court Munich I against Sonos Europe B.V. and Sonos, Inc., alleging infringement of two Google patents seeking monetary damages and an injunction preventing sales of allegedly infringing products. In March 2024, the Company received a judgment from the German Federal Patent Court invalidating one of the patents. Google has now dismissed its case against Sonos concerning this patent. In June 2021, the Munich court issued a decision dismissing Google's complaint regarding the other Google patent for lack of infringement by the Company. Google appealed the Munich court's ruling and, in April 2024, the appellate court in Munich rendered a judgment dismissing Google's appeal.
On August 21, 2020, Google filed a lawsuit against Sonos Europe B.V. and Sonos, Inc. in France, alleging infringement of two Google patents seeking monetary damages and an injunction preventing sales of allegedly infringing products. In February 2021,
Google withdrew its infringement allegations regarding one patent in view of prior art brought to the attention of the court by the Company. In March 2022, the French trial court ruled for the Company on one of Google's asserted patents. The French trial court found the other Google patent invalid in November 2023. Google appealed the French trial court's March 2022 and November 2023 rulings. In April 2024, Google dismissed its appeal of the November 2023 ruling, which is now final. In May 2024, Google's appeal of the March 2022 judgment was decided against Google and in favor of Sonos.
In September 2020, Google filed a lawsuit against Sonos Europe B.V. in the Netherlands, alleging infringement of a Google patent and seeking an injunction preventing sales of allegedly infringing products. In February 2022, the Court rejected Google's claims concerning this patent. Google appealed this decision, which appeal was stayed in April 2024.
On August 8, 2022, Google filed two complaints with the ITC against the Company and two counterpart lawsuits in the Northern District of California against the Company, collectively alleging infringement by the Company of seven Google patents generally related to wireless charging, device setup, and voice control, and seeking monetary damages and other non-monetary relief. The counterpart lawsuits are stayed pending completion of the ITC investigations. The ITC has terminated the investigation as to one Google patent as a result of imminent expiration of that Google patent. The first ITC investigation concluded in December 2023 with a final determination of no violation by the Company. Google chose not to appeal this determination. The oral hearing in the second ITC investigation has been postponed after the administrative law judge has indicated that she will be invalidating both Google patents at issue.
Implicit
On March 10, 2017, Implicit, LLC (“Implicit”) filed a patent infringement action in the United States District Court, District of Delaware against the Company. Implicit is asserting that the Company has infringed on certain claims of two patents in this case. The Company denies the allegations. The claims at issue have been held unpatentable by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Implicit has appealed this ruling, which is currently scheduled to be heard by the appeals court in 2024. There is no assurance of a favorable outcome and the Company’s business could be adversely affected as a result of a finding that the Company patents-in-suit are invalid and/or unenforceable. A range of loss, if any, associated with this matter is not probable or reasonably estimable as of September 28, 2024.
The Company is involved in certain other litigation matters not listed above but does not consider these matters to be material either individually or in the aggregate at this time. The Company’s view of the matters not listed may change in the future as the litigation and events related thereto unfold.
Guarantees and Indemnifications
In the normal course of business, the Company enters into agreements that contain a variety of representations and warranties and provide for general indemnification. The Company’s exposure under these agreements is unknown because it involves claims that may be made against the Company in the future, but have not yet been made. To date, the Company has not incurred material costs to defend lawsuits or settle claims related to these indemnification provisions. The Company has also entered into indemnification agreements with its directors and officers that may require the Company to indemnify its directors and officers against liabilities that may arise by reason of their status or service as directors or officers to the fullest extent permitted by the Delaware General Corporation Law. The Company also currently has directors’ and officers’ insurance. No amount has been accrued in the consolidated financial statements with respect to these indemnification guarantees.