Tech giant Apple has launched an appeal against a decision by the US International Trade Commission (ITC) to ban imports of certain Apple Watches, following a patent dispute with medical technology company Masimo.
In a filing to the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, Apple said that the ITC’s ruling was flawed due to what it described as a series of defective patent rulings. It further argued that Masimo had failed to demonstrate sufficient investment in competing US products, which Apple believes justifies the ban reversal.
Masimo, headquartered in Irvine, California, has accused Apple of poaching its employees and misappropriating its pulse oximetry technology, allegedly after discussions about potential collaboration. This accusation forms the crux of Masimo’s successful petition to the ITC, resulting in the ban on imports of Apple’s latest Series 9 and Ultra 2 smartwatches due to claimed infringement of Masimo’s patents pertaining to blood-oxygen level readings.
Apple managed to temporarily resume sales of the watches after convincing the Federal Circuit to suspend the ban. However, the ban was later reinstated in January, prompting Apple to modify the watches sold during the appeal process by removing pulse oximetry capabilities, a measure expected to last for at least a year.
In a separate development, US Customs and Border Protection concluded in January that redesigned versions of the watches did not breach Masimo’s rights and were exempt from the ban. Masimo confirmed that these redesigned watches did not include pulse oximetry functionality.
Apple’s appeal challenges the validity of Masimo’s patents and disputes allegations of patent infringement. Apple argues that the ban should be overturned because Masimo’s wearable technology, covered by the patents in question, was purely hypothetical at the time of Masimo’s complaint to the ITC in 2021.
