在骨传导耳机赛道上，韶音正忙于专利诉讼，以稳固自己的护城河。
有数据统计，仅在2021年，韶音就对20多家侵权厂商提起了200多起专利诉讼，涉及20多项专利，其中与小米的专利之争相对紧促。
2022年10月底，小米发布首款骨传导耳机，宣布加入骨传导耳机战局。然而，近两年内，骨传导耳机战局的火药味有些重，其表现在于韶音连年将专利大棒打在小米头上。
在小米正式踏入骨传导耳机赛道之前，韶音于2022年9月在南京市中级人民法院，对小米科技有限责任公司和小米有品科技有限公司提出了实用新型专利侵权案件，到了今年1月初，韶音以侵害实用新型专利权纠纷的由头再次起诉小米，案件得到受理，但审理结果尚未公开。
PART1专利维权，为布局争取时间
韶音是致力于原创科技创新的国家级高新技术企业，该公司打造的骨传导耳机颠覆听觉体验，在售国家和地区超过60个。
自创立起，韶音就十分注重打造专利护城河。去年11月，在一场科技大会上，韶音中国区CEO杨云称，截至2022年9月，韶音已经在全球进行了3300余项知识自主产权布局。
从专利维权数据来看，自2016年至2023年3月，韶音曾因侵害实用新型专利权和侵害外观设计专利权纠纷而起诉他人或者公司的法律诉讼共计51件。
其中与骨传导耳机密切相关的案件是，2022年7月25日，韶音起诉上海翰临电子科技有限公司和深圳市微运动信息科技有限公司，源于这两家公司侵害实用新型专利ZL201520611462.7“一种改善骨传导扬声器音质的骨传导扬声器”。随后，上海知识产权法院审判，被告于本判决生效之日起十日内赔偿原告经济损失及为制止侵权行为所支付的合理开支共计10万元。
对于专利维权，韶音某知识产权家解释道：“我们是做原创创新的，如果知识产权不抓到位，你就无法保护市场，为市场布局争取时间，所以，知识产权这一块一直是我亲自在抓。1997年、1998年我们开始捣鼓骨传导麦克风的时候，一些发明专利都是我自己写的。”
由此可见，韶音本身有很强的知识产权意识，近几年持续发起专利之争主要是保护骨传导核心技术，从而为在国内外布局骨传导耳机的市场争取更多时间，究其本质是，韶音只有保证骨传导耳机的创新价值，才保住原有的市场份额，从而保证韶音在骨传导耳机市场的重要地位。
PART2市场变数，骨传导火热起来
公开数据显示，中国真无线耳机市场 2022 年出货量超过6881万台，同比下降 15.0%。反而骨传导耳机实现增长，其出货量为229万台，同比增长 123.6%。
再放眼到全球市场，骨传导耳机市场规模由2012年的2亿元增长至2022年的89亿元，实现了超2800%的增长。据预测，2023年全球骨传导耳机市场规模将达到200亿元。
骨传导耳机尤其受到国外运动爱好者的青睐。公开数据显示，截至2021年底，韶音在海外市场占据了全球骨传导耳机出货量的70%。其中40%的营收来自北美，比国内市场的营收比例还要高出10%。
骨传导耳机市场的空间广大自然也被众多厂商看好，华为、小米等纷纷发布同类百元价位产品，填补韶音在中低端价位的空缺，其市场变数也导致专利垄断的局面被攻破，南卡、墨觉等后起之秀另辟他路，纷纷手握几十项专利杀入市场，一时间风起云涌。
就在去年10月底，小米加入骨传导耳机阵容，推出旗下首款产品，售价699元起。与韶音旗舰款1298元的定价相比，小米百元定价符合非专业用户的消费水平，其本身强大的品牌势力也将可能在未来几年内渗透到骨传导耳机阵容当中。
进一步来看，现价段的入局者用低价吸引了消费者的关注，也让韶音打造的高端骨传导耳机的价格体系破防，那韶音的市场份额自然也将有可能减少。
PART3市场趋势，品牌商进入骨传导耳机赛道
市场变数无疑让韶音感受到骨传导耳机市场的竞争压力，举起专利大棒向小米等企业发起相关侵权诉讼，但在已结案的案件判决中，韶音所获得的赔偿并不大，不得不让人怀疑的是，这是否存在为旗下爆款产品的争取市场时间而过度维护专利的嫌疑？是否存在通过专利大棒来挤兑低价竞争者的可能性？
有测评博主说，耳机的制作成本极低，技术门槛也不高，市场竞争往往很激烈。韶音之所以仍然在骨传导耳机领域处于垄断地位，一方面是因为专利护城河，另一方面是因为韶音对用户的消费需求深度了解。
目前，除了韶音，骨传导耳机阵容还包括南卡、飞利浦、纽曼、逸欧、大康、山水音响、维尔尚、唯动等。韶音的骨传导技术实力无可厚非，不过，市场激烈的竞争变数已逐步瓦解韶音的专利垄断局面。
而其他品牌商切入骨传导耳机赛道是一种发展趋势，因此，小米、华为等企业的加入多半是耳机市场的趋势驱动。
未来骨传导耳机市场，胜算难定，但企业之间的品牌综合实力将在市场风云当中一一呈现。
SHOKZ engage with the patent lawsuit with Xiaomi and other more than 20 companies，to Protect the benefits of bone conduction headset products
On the bone conduction headset track, ShaoYin is busy with patent litigation to solidify its moat.
Some statistics show that in 2021 alone, ShaoYin filed more than 200 patent lawsuits against more than 20 infringing manufacturers, involving more than 20 patents, of which the patent battle with Xiaomi was tightly urged.
At the end of October 2022, Xiaomi released its first bone conduction headset, announcing that it had joined the bone conduction headset battle. However, within the past two years, the bone conduction headset battlefield is somewhat heavy with gunpowder, and its performance lies in Shaoyin’s patent stick hitting Xiaomi’s head in successive years.
Before Xiaomi officially stepped into the bone conduction headset track, Shao Yin in September 2022 in Nanjing Intermediate People’s Court, against Xiaomi Technology Co. and Xiaomi Youpin Technology Co., Ltd. filed a utility model patent infringement case, to the beginning of January this year, Shao Yin to infringe the utility model patent dispute on the head again sued Xiaomi, the case was accepted, but the trial results have not yet been made public.
This makes people think about the following two questions: First, what is the purpose of the patent battle that Shaoyin continues to initiate? Second, Xiaomi’s entry, is it a threat to Shaoyin’s position as the industry leader in bone conduction headphones?
Patent rights, to buy time for the layout
Shaoyin is a national high-tech enterprise committed to original technology innovation, the company created bone conduction headphones subvert the listening experience, in the sale of more than 60 countries and regions.
Since its inception, ShaoYin has paid great attention to building a patent moat. Last November, at a technology conference, Shaoyin China CEO Yang Yun said that as of September 2022, Shaoyin has carried out more than 3,300 intellectual property rights layout worldwide.
From the patent rights data, from 2016 to March 2023, ShaoYin had a total of 51 lawsuits against others or the company for infringement of utility model patent rights and infringement of design patent rights disputes.
The case closely related to the bone conduction headset is, July 25, 2022, Shao Yin sued Shanghai Hanlin Electronic Technology Co., Ltd. and Shenzhen Micro Motion Information Technology Co., Ltd. from the two companies infringed utility model patent ZL201520611462.7 “a bone conduction speaker to improve the sound quality of bone conduction speakers “. Subsequently, the Shanghai Intellectual Property Court trial, the defendant in this judgment within ten days from the date of entry into force to compensate the plaintiff economic losses and reasonable expenses paid to stop the infringement of a total of 100,000 yuan.
For patent rights, shao sound a intellectual property rights home explained: “we are doing original innovation, if intellectual property rights are not caught in place, you can not protect the market, to buy time for the market layout, so, intellectual property rights this piece has been I personally in the grasp. 1997, 1998 when we began to drum bone conduction microphone, some invention patents are my own write I wrote the patents myself.”
This shows that Shao Yin itself has a strong sense of intellectual property rights, in recent years continued to launch the patent battle is mainly to protect the core technology of bone conduction, so as to layout the market for bone conduction headphones at home and abroad to buy more time, the essence is that Shao Yin only to ensure that the value of bone conduction headset innovation, in order to retain the original market share, so as to ensure that Shao Yin in the bone conduction headset market important position.
Market variables, bone conduction fire up
Public data shows that China’s true wireless headset market 2022 shipments of more than 68.81 million units, down 15.0% year-on-year. On the contrary, bone conduction headphones to achieve growth, its shipments of 2.29 million units, an increase of 123.6% year-on-year.
Looking at the global market, the market size of bone conduction headphones grew from 200 million yuan in 2012 to 8.9 billion yuan in 2022, achieving a growth of over 2800%. According to forecasts, the global bone conduction headset market size will reach 20 billion yuan in 2023.
Bone conduction headphones are especially favored by foreign sports enthusiasts. Public data show that by the end of 2021, ShaoYin accounted for 70% of global bone conduction headset shipments in overseas markets. Among them, 40% of revenue from North America, than the domestic market revenue ratio is 10% higher.
Bone conduction headset market space vast natural also by many manufacturers optimistic, Huawei, Xiaomi, etc. have released similar hundred yuan price point products, fill Shao Yin in the low-end price of the vacancy, its market variables also led to patent monopoly situation was broken, Nanka, Mo Jue and other rising stars to find another way, have dozens of patents in hand to kill the market, a time wind up.
At the end of October last year, Xiaomi joined the bone conduction headset lineup, launched its first product, priced from 699 yuan. Compared with the Shao Yin flagship model 1298 yuan pricing, Xiaomi hundred yuan pricing in line with the consumption level of non-professional users, its own strong brand power will likely penetrate the bone conduction headset lineup in the next few years.
Further, the current price segment of the entrant with a low price to attract the attention of consumers, but also let Shao Yin to build the high-end bone conduction headset price system broken defense, that Shao Yin’s market share will naturally be likely to reduce.
Market trends, brands into the bone conduction headset track
Market variables undoubtedly make Shao Yin feel the competitive pressure of the bone conduction headset market, raise the patent stick to Xiaomi and other enterprises to launch related infringement lawsuits, but in the case that has been concluded in the judgment, Shao Yin was not much compensation, one has to wonder whether there is a suspicion of excessive maintenance of patents for its explosive products to fight for market time? Is there the possibility of squeezing out low-cost competitors through the patent stick?
Some review bloggers say that the production cost of headphones is extremely low, and the technical threshold is not high, the market competition is often very fierce. The reason why Shaoyin is still in a monopoly position in the field of bone conduction headphones, on the one hand, because of the patent moat, on the other hand, because Shaoyin has a deep understanding of the user’s consumer needs.
At present, in addition to Shao Yin, bone conduction headphones lineup also includes NANK, Philips, Newsmy, earsopen, Dacom, DACOM、SANSUI, VORSON, Vidonn and so on. Shao Yin’s bone conduction technology strength can not be faulted, however, the market fierce competition variables have gradually dismantled SHOKZ’s patent monopoly situation.
And other brands cut into the bone conduction headset track is a development trend, so Xiaomi, Huawei and other companies to join the trend of the headset market is mostly driven.
The future bone conduction headset market, the odds are hard to determine, but the comprehensive strength of the brand between companies will be presented one by one in the market storm.
