Implications of the ITC ruling on the Apple-Masimo Trademark Violation Case for Pulse Oxygen Sensing

Apple has several options for getting its wearables back on the market. The company will appeal to a federal court. It can also reach a settlement with Masimo by deactivating the blood-oxygen sensing features. More information about future plans for the Watch 9 and Ultra 2 should be available after the review period expires on December 25.

The International Trade Commission ruled that some Apple Watches may have violated Masimo’s patents because they included a blood oxygen feature.

Over the past few years, the patents between Apple and Masimo have been a point of contention. Masimo is most well known for its pulse oximeter. Masimo filed two separate cases — one with the US District Court in the Central District of California and a second with the ITC —claiming that Apple infringed on its pulse oximetry tech. This particular import ban is due to the latter.

He believes that the Biden administration will agree with Apple’s argument that it is a gold standard when it comes to US innovation. “Apple likes to play hardball with other companies, and sometimes it helps them reach more favorable deals over things like licensing.”

Gene Munster, a longtime Apple analyst, said yanking the new watches from retail stores in the final stretch of the holiday shopping season is unfortunate timing for the company, but he expects a “fractional at most” impact on sales.

Most people who want to buy a watch for a holiday gift already have done so. “The bigger question I have is, ‘What will be the duration of this?’ “

Apple Pulls a Phone Watch from the Stores after losing a Patent Case: How Fitbit Can Block the Importation of a Health Tracker

While Masimo could not make its case to a jury, the trial did reveal that Apple discussed the idea of acquiring Masimo at one point before ultimately deciding against it.

Apple’s new phone watches will be pulled from store shelves this week, after losing a patent dispute.

The medical tech company Masimo had a long running dispute with the suspension. Masimo was sued by Apple in 2021. One of the patents that the company alleged that Apple had violated was related to light-based blood-oxygen monitoring. The ITC upheld a judge’s ruling that said Apple had violated some of the patents. The decision then led to a 60-day presidential review period, which expires on December 25. Apple is prepared to comply.

Many smartwatches look alike and have similar features, so it’s rare for a company to successfully block the sales of a competitor by claiming patent infringement. In 2016, Fitbit attempted to block the import of Jawbone products in a patent case, but dropped its suit after realizing that … well, Jawbone doesn’t sell that many fitness trackers anyway. To see this happen to a company like Apple that makes the best-selling watches in the world is truly a feat.