Due to an ongoing legal disagreement over a patent, Apple has once again been prohibited from selling two smartwatch models in the United States.
A US appeals court has since overturned the tech giant’s initial permission to sell its Series 9 and Ultra 2 watches while the legal process was still in progress.
Watch imports are also impacted.
Apple announced on Thursday that it will stop selling watches with the contentious blood oxygen feature so that it can remain on the shelf.
This is the most recent development in the conflict between the company and Masimo, a manufacturer of medical technologies.
Masimo and subsidiary Cercacor has accused the manufacturer of iPhones of stealing their technology to assess blood oxygen levels by stealing key personnel and other means.
The US International Trade Commission said in October that it had accepted Apple’s infringement on some patents and had issued an order prohibiting specific imports and sales. This was put on hold while the appeal was pending even though it was supposed to take effect in late December.
Since 2020, the majority of Apple watch models—including the Series 9 and Ultra 2—have come with the function. Not so with the SE model.
It is not possible to import the impacted watches after Thursday, 17:00 ET (22:00 GMT).
“Even the largest and most powerful companies must respect the intellectual rights of American inventors and must deal with the consequences when they are caught infringing others’ patents,” stated Joe Kiani, the founder and CEO of Masimo, in response to the verdict.
According to the US International Trade Commission, Apple “strongly disagreed” with its assertion that it had infringed on some patent rights.
“Pending the appeal, Apple is taking steps to comply with the ruling while ensuring customers have access to Apple Watch with limited disruption,” the company stated in a statement.
After dethroning Samsung from the top spot for the first time in 12 years, Apple now holds the majority of the worldwide smartphone market.
This Monday, the International figures Corporation revealed figures showing that it made up more than a quarter of all phones shipped last year.