U.S. upholds ban on latest Apple Watch after patent scandal

The United States International Trade Commission is upholding a ban on the sale of the Apple Watch Ultra 2 and Series 9 models, some of the newest versions on the market. The Cupertino company is now appealing the decision to the United States Court of Appeals, hoping to keep them in physical and digital stores. Meanwhile, the legal battle over patents for the company’s blood-oxygen sensor continues. Joe Biden’s administration initially refused to block a court ruling, leading the company to this point.

What is the Apple Watch patent scandal all about?

To understand the story, we need to know the position of the plaintiffs. It is the company Masimo that accuses Apple of hiring the engineers responsible for its blood oxygen sensor to integrate it into the Apple Watch. Masimo is a medical device company that develops technological solutions for monitoring systems. When they saw the patents published, they decided to sue because of the similarities to their own systems.

A representative states via Reuters that this decision is “a victory for the integrity of the U.S. patent system and ultimately for American consumers”. In the meantime, if you go to any of the official stores, you will see that no distribution chain is selling any version of the two models. The blockade does not affect the Apple Watch SE or the other models, though. Analysts expect Apple’s claims to drag out the case for another year. Their short-term goal is to have the blockade lifted so they can place the remaining units and address the 2024 models, which are expected to undergo a revolution as part of the device’s tenth anniversary. Time will tell how this will affect their short and medium-term plans.