Hard blow for Apple, several Apple Watches banned for sale by the American authorities

2023-12-26 15:52:00

It’s an earthquake for the company with the bitten apple. Several models of its Apple Watch connected watch have been officially banned from sale in ANDUnited States this Tuesday. At the origin of this decision by the American competition authorities: a case of patent infringement.

On October 27, the United States International Trade Commission (USITC) recommended banning ANDUnited States certain models of the Apple Watch, accused by the manufacturer of medical devices Masimo of copying its technologies for detecting the level of oxygen in the blood. A real thorn in the side of the giant valued at $3,000 billion on the stock market, but which still complied with the regulator’s request. On December 18, Apple had already announced the suspension of the sale of several models, the Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 from December 21 on its website and following December 24 in stores, in order to “ respect the decision if it were to be confirmed “, a spokesperson for the group explained to AFP.

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The government did not come to Apple’s aid

But the Cupertino company was waiting for help from the government which might decide to refuse this decision within 60 days following the commission’s announcement. Ultimately, this will not be the case. “ After extensive consultations “, Trade Representative Katherine Tai “ decided not to oppose the USITC’s decision, which became final on December 26, 2023 », announced the diplomatic mission for Commerce, attached to the White House.

A decision which, however, had no impact on the Apple share price which showed a slight drop of 0.28% at the opening of the market, around 4 p.m. Paris time.

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Apple accused of patent infringement

This affair is not a surprise for Apple, which has been facing Masimo for several years now. It all started in 2021, when the Masimo company decided to contact the USITC regarding the Apple Watch 6, a model put on sale in 2020 with a function for measuring the level of blood oxygen saturation, copying, according to the medical device company, one of its patented technologies. A legal war then began. Apple launched two legal actions at the end of 2022 for non-compliance with patents once morest Masimo, accusing it of copying the technology of its connected watches. “ Masimo improperly attempted to use the ITC to prevent millions of American consumers from having access to a product that might save their lives, while making room for its own watch that copies that ofApple »accused the Cupertino group at the end of October.

In the end, it was the giant who lost his arm. The USITC found that Apple had “ infringed two patents held by Masimo Corporation and Cercacor Laboratories “, she recalled in a press release published at the end of October. “ The decision to exclude certain Apple Watch models manufactured abroad proves that even the most powerful company in the world must respect laws protecting intellectual property rights », Commented a spokesperson for Masimo, contacted on Monday by AFP.

But the company created by Steve Jobs does not seem to have said its last word. She believes that the American body was wrong and that its decision should have been annulled, which she said she was ready to seek in court if necessary.

(With AFP)