In recent legal battles, Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2 faced a setback due to a lawsuit by health tech company Masimo. The court ruled that these smartwatches violated Masimo’s patent for blood oxygen sensors, leading to a ban on their imports into the U.S.
This ban jeopardized the future sales of Series 9 and Ultra 2, as retailers couldn’t restock after selling their existing inventory. Despite President Biden supporting the ban, there’s a glimmer of hope. Masimo’s lawyer revealed that Apple may continue selling both watches if they disable the pulse oximetry features, without removing the sensors.
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Exclusion Order Enforcement Branch decided that Apple’s redesign falls outside the scope of the remedial orders. While there’s no official ruling from the U.S. Court of Appeals yet, Apple can continue selling the watches as is until a decision is made. However, it’s likely they’ll have to disable the pulse oximetry function eventually.
Andrew Tropeano, Host of News Around America, comments that this situation is probably the best for Apple, as the blood oxygen monitoring function wasn’t a major selling point. Disabling it on the software level seems to be the easiest fix to keep the wearable on the market.
In conclusion, we can expect changes just in time for the Apple Watch Series 10 and Ultra 3, which may hit the market without the blood oxygen sensor.
