Apple Is Discontinuing Sales Of Its Flagship Apple Watches This Week: Here's Why
Apple has just announced that it is halting the sales of the second-generation Apple Watch Ultra and the Apple Watch Series 9 in the U.S. The sales block comes into effect on December 21 for the website, while brick-and-mortar sales will implement the same policy starting December 24. The move will be limited to Apple's official offline and online storefronts. However, the company has also been asked to not sell the devices to resellers, as well. That means the existing inventory from third parties like Amazon might also dry up soon after the December 25 order review deadline granted to Apple.
The ban covers smartwatches that allow the measurement of blood oxygen saturation levels using a dedicated sensor. It's also the tech that is behind the sales stoppage, which comes courtesy of the United States International Trade Commission following a long-drawn-out patent lawsuit filed by med-tech giant Masimo. In January 2023, a U.S. ITC judge ruled that Apple infringed on patents held by Masimo for its pulse oximeter tech.
Back then, the court did not order any sales ban but did note that an import ban was on the table. Apple got some legal relief after a court ruled that some of the patent claims made by Masimo were invalid. However, a month later, Apple sued Masimo accusing it of copying the Apple Watch. Later in the same month, the U.S. ITC's January ruling was upheld, reiterating that Apple indeed infringed on at least one patent held by Masimo.
How did it come to this?
"Apple strongly disagrees with the order and is pursuing a range of legal and technical options to ensure that Apple Watch is available to customers," Apple said in a statement shared with 9to5Mac. The decision to stop the sales of the Apple Watch Series 9 and the Ultra 2 comes as a precautionary measure from Apple. Following the October verdict by the U.S. ITC, the agency issued a limited exclusion order for an import ban that was supposed to come into effect 60 days after the second round of court battles between the two companies.
The drama dates all the way back to 2013, when Apple reportedly invited multiple med-tech companies, including Masimo, to meet as it was developing the first-generation Apple Watch. However, after initial discussions, no deal materialized between Apple and Masimo. Over the years, Apple reportedly poached Masimo's talent as it continued development of a feature that was allegedly based on the pulse oximeters developed by Masimo.
"I have to stop [Apple] from using my technology," Masimo CEO Joe Kiani recently told Forbes. Apple still has legal avenues to avert any long-term sales ban and import restrictions on the targeted smartwatch models. It is also worth noting that older Apple smartwatches with a blood oxygen sensor are not affected by this decision. As for Masimo, it has sued Apple twice since 2020 over the theft of trade secrets.