Consumer electronics giant Bose and Apple-owned Beats Electronics have made the decision to go head-to-head in the market after both sides agreed to end their ongoing legal battle. The luxury electronics manufacturer has reportedly taken back a patent infringement lawsuit against Apple’s latest acquisition which was filed in July, earlier this year. According to tech site the Verge, Bose had alleged that Beats Electronics had infringed on their noise-cancellation technology which is patent-protected.
Bose QuietComfort headphones are well-known for the technology and were the first to introduce it to market. Bose had attempted to restrict the import of Beats Studio Wireless headphones into the United States. However, legal teams of both parties have since decided to settle out of court and as a result, the International Trade Commission has been requested to cease their inquiry on any probable patent infringement.
Despite the settlement the two tech titans will now play-off against each other like major competitors do. The battle will now be fought via marketing. It’s no secret that a solid marketing campaign backing a quality product can bring in sales. Apple is among the best in the business and that does give Beats an upper hand. Bose, on the other hand, is a longtime pioneer in the electronics industry and to them Beats is more of a rookie, albeit a really good one!
According to the Verge, Bose has signed an exclusive deal with the NFL making their brand one of the sport’s official sponsors. This also means NFL stars will not be able to sport competitor products on match days. Apparently players such as quarterback Colin Kaepernick have already been fined for breaching the ban. But according to MacRumors, Apple may still have some tricks up its sleeve.
Bose or Beats? Hmm… Could this mark the beginning of a headphones war?