Starting Tuesday, Apple has been banned from selling its newest watch in the US after the Biden administration refused to veto the International Trade Commission’s (ITC) decision.
The ban on the sale of the Watch Ultra 2 and Watch Series 9 is the result of a patent dispute between Apple and Masimo, a medical technology company. Masimo sued Apple at the ITC in 2021 for patent infringement over the Apple Watch Series 6, the first model with the ability to monitor blood oxygen levels.
In October, the ITC upheld a judge’s January ruling that Apple had infringed Masimo’s rights to the technology to measure blood oxygen levels.
“On October 26, 2023, the U.S. International Trade Commission found that Apple, Inc. infringed two patents owned by Masimo Corporation and Cercacor Laboratories, Inc, both based in the United States. Since 2005, the Office of the United States Trade Representative has been delegated the President’s authority under Section 337 of the Trade Act of 1930 to review the ITC’s decision for a 60-day period.”
Initially, Masimo sued Apple in federal court in 2020, accusing the company of poaching its employees and stealing trade secrets regarding its light-based technology for measuring blood oxygen levels.
Apple filed an appeal on Tuesday and is reportedly working on a software solution to restart sales.
