Apple Watch ban temporarily lifted amid patent dispute
In the ongoing patent dispute battle over its latest Series 9 and Ultra 2 Apple Watches, the U.S. tech company Apple has gained a reprieve temporarily as an appeal court on Wednesday issued an order halting a ban imposed on its products.
According to the ruling, the court granted the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) until January 10 to respond to Apple’s request for an extended stay while the matter is being heard by the courts.
The Series 9 and Ultra 2 Apple watches utilise a blood oxygen monitor which is the subject of patent dispute as the tech giant is illegally using the technology from medical tech company Masimo, ITC’s ruling halted the watches’ production accordingly.
Masimo hasn’t yet commented on the matter.
Tuesday, the Biden administration upheld the ITC’s ruling, thereby preventing the watches from being sold in the United States. Apple filed an emergency motion later the day, asking the court to permit it to reopen sales of two of its best-selling watches while its broader appeal in a contentious patent dispute is decided.
Sales at Apple were paused just before the Christmas break. Meanwhile, California-based company, Cupertino claimed in a motion filed on Tuesday that it would suffer “irreparable harm” if the prior court orders were upheld for the two weeks it expects the ITC to take to consider its appeal.
Apple Expected Losses between $300 – 400 million
Wedbush Securities analyst Dan Ives predicted that Apple would lose out on between $300 and $400 million in holiday sales as a result of the disruption. Analysts anticipate Apple to generate nearly $120 billion in sales this quarter, which includes the holiday shopping season, which is a relative drop in the ocean for the company.
After the reprieve, Apple expressed its excitement to “return the entire Apple Watch lineup to customers in time for the new year” in a statement to CBS News.
The tech company added that both versions, “including the blood oxygen feature,” will go on sale in American Apple stores on Wednesday and the company’s website on Thursday at noon Pacific time.
