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Shure Held in Contempt Over August 2019 Mic Patent Order

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ClearOne and Shure continue to battle via the courts — with the latest ruling that Shure is held in contempt over its MXA910-A ceiling microphone.

A judge in the U.S. District Court of the Northern District of Illinois ruled that “Shure has violated the preliminary injunction order and is found in contempt because it designed the MXA910-A in such a way that allows it to be easily installed flush in most ceiling grids (the ‘Contempt Order’).”

The “preliminary injunction order” referenced (the “PI Order”) is the August 2019 order that enjoined Shure from, among other things, “manufacturing, marketing and selling the MXA910 in a way that encourages or allows integrators to install it in a drop-ceiling mounting configuration” in a way that infringes ClearOne’s U.S. Patent No. 9,813,806 (the “’806 Patent”).

According to Shure, however, the company reinforces that the previously discontinued product was meant to be installed on its flanges, and stated, “This ruling pertains solely to Shure, so customers can continue to use the MXA910-A in accordance with its intended design consistent with the instructions in the user manual.”

In the Contempt Order, the Court corrected Shure: “[T]he record is clear and convincing that Shure—through its design choices—violated the injunction order by allowing integrators to install the MXA910-A in the enjoined flush configuration.” Ultimately, the Court ordered that “Shure shall no longer manufacture, market, or sell the MXA910-A…”

In addition, the Court held that “[t]he record is also clear as to the MXA910-60CM, but in an abundance of caution, the Court will refrain from granting that aspect of the contempt motion to allow for additional discovery” on that and the “possibility that Shure also violated the preliminary injunction order” by “pushing” sales of the MXA910 immediately after the issuance of the PI Order — discovery to which ClearOne would not have otherwise been entitled.

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Shure says “the Order … provides clarification of ClearOne’s patent rights and verifies that Shure’s current MXA910-US product cannot be improperly mounted and thereby cannot infringe ClearOne’s patent. The MXA910-US, which accommodates ease of installation in all suspended ceiling grid sizes, remains widely available for purchase by customers.”

ClearOne’s motion to accuse Shure’s MXA910-US of infringing the ’806 Patent is still pending with the Court.

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