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Muvox drops its patent lawsuit against BMG, then sues Apple and Amazon over the same patent
Muvox LLC has withdrawn its nearly two-year-old patent lawsuit against BMG Rights Management, only to file fresh infringement suits against Apple and Amazon a day later, all centred on the same patent. The move keeps alive a pattern in which the New Mexico-based firm, described as a non-practicing entity, has spread claims over a single music-recommendation patent across major music and technology companies, raising the stakes for streaming services now facing similar exposure.
Muvox filed a notice of voluntary dismissal "with prejudice" against BMG on 15 July, barring it from refiling that claim, after the case had stalled and a judge threatened dismissal for failure to serve the defendant. The following day it lodged separate complaints against Apple and Amazon over US Patent No. 11,899,713, covering "mood"-based song selection, seeking jury trials and damages. The same patent has previously been asserted against IBM, Spotify, Netaktion and Meta, and its validity is being challenged at the US Patent and Trademark Office by monitoring firm Unified Patents.
In short
- Muvox dropped its BMG patent suit, then sued Apple and Amazon.
- Both new suits target the same music-recommendation patent, No. 11,899,713.
- Patent has also hit IBM, Spotify, Meta and others since 2024.
Steelman: both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
Patents are intellectual property assets deserving protection regardless of whether the holder manufactures products, and patent licensing enables inventors to monetise innovations without bearing manufacturing burdens. If Apple and Amazon are genuinely infringing the patent covering mood-based song selection, they should compensate Muvox accordingly; the USPTO's ongoing validity challenge ensures the patent meets proper scrutiny before any damages are awarded. Specialist enforcement firms play a legitimate role in the broader innovation economy.
The case against
Non-practising entities exploit legal ambiguities rather than advance innovation, and the pattern of filing identical claims across companies, withdrawing under procedural pressure, and refiling against fresh defendants suggests tactical manipulation designed to coerce settlements. Such litigation wastes court resources, raises costs for consumers, and contradicts the patent system's core purpose of encouraging genuine technological progress. This model represents a predatory business approach fundamentally at odds with meaningful intellectual property protection.
Explained simply
Music recommendation systems select songs for listeners, sometimes using mood as well as listening history or stated preferences. The patent at the centre of these disputes, US Patent No. 11,899,713, concerns selecting music based on mood.
Muvox is a New Mexico company described as a non-practising entity, meaning it does not sell products using the patent. BMG Rights Management, Apple and Amazon are music and technology companies; the same patent has also featured in claims involving IBM, Spotify, Netaktion and Meta.
Patent disputes can affect how companies develop or offer services, and may lead to damages if infringement is established. The patent’s validity is also being challenged at the US Patent and Trademark Office, so both its legal status and the claims against companies remain in question.
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