Title: Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2 Models Lose Key Health Monitoring Feature Following Patent Dispute
In a recent turn of events, Apple Inc. has been dealt a blow as it failed to convince the court to allow the sale of its Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2 models with functional blood oxygen monitoring capabilities. These popular models will be stripped of this sought-after feature due to a ruling by the US International Trade Commission (ITC).
The ITC found that Apple had violated patents owned by medical technology company Masimo, specifically related to light-based blood-oxygen monitoring. Consequently, as a result of this infringement, Apple has been ordered to discontinue the sale of both models by January 18.
Apple had initially taken preemptive action by removing the watches from its website and stores. However, a temporary pause on the ban was granted by a federal appeals court, allowing Apple to resume sales. Nevertheless, the ban has now been reinstated, further complicating the tech giant’s position.
Surprisingly, while Apple cannot sell the affected models with blood oxygen monitoring capabilities, the company can still market redesigned watches without this functionality. US Customs and Border Protection has allowed the sale of these modified watches for the time being.
Unfazed by this setback, Apple believes that the US Court of Appeals should overturn the ITC’s decision and vehemently disagrees with the ruling. In an attempt to address the situation, Apple had been actively working on a software update to reinstate the sale of these devices even before the ban took effect.
For users who already own the discontinued models, the blood monitoring app will still be available. Nonetheless, a message will now inform users that the feature is no longer functional and advise them to consult the Health app on their iPhones for more information.
The ban is set to officially take effect on January 18, resulting in the removal of the blood oxygen feature from the affected models on Apple’s website. Apple has confirmed that the watch models will be available once again in the US, albeit without the blood oxygen monitoring capability. However, the company declined to provide further comments on the matter.
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