Patent dispute: Apple loses at U.S. appeals court

A U.S. appeals court on Friday upheld two previous rulings by a patent tribunal that were in favour of Masimo, in a longstanding intellectual property dispute with tech giant Apple relating to the blood oxygen sensors that are present in newer models of the Apple Watch.

According to the ruling, Apple was found to have infringed on Masimo’s patents for the sensors technology. This ruling is likely to have significant financial implications for Apple, while Masimo stands to benefit from the decision.

The decisions by the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit concern findings by the Patent and Trademark Office and come as Apple is separately fighting to overturn a ban on U.S. Apple Watch imports imposed by the International Trade Commission (ITC).

Masimo, a medical technology firm, has been embroiled in a legal dispute with Apple over the alleged unauthorized use of its pulse oximetry technology in the Apple Watch. According to Masimo, Apple incorporated its technology into the Apple Watch without permission, leading to a prolonged legal battle between the two companies.

Also Read: Apple appeals U.S. ban on watch imports

As a result, on December 21, Apple removed the Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 from its online store. Although there was a brief ban on importing these models into the United States, it has since been temporarily paused.

According to a recent report by Bloomberg, Apple is working on a “rescue mission” to save their $17 billion business. The company is currently facing a patent infringement lawsuit filed by Masimo, which claims that Apple’s device that measures a user’s blood oxygen level violates its patents. In response, Apple’s engineers are reportedly speeding up their efforts to make changes to the algorithms used in the device.

These changes will adjust how the technology determines oxygen saturation and presents the data to customers. In addition to software fixes, Apple is also exploring other potential workarounds to save their business.