Apple, Masimo, and several regulatory bodies have reached a temporary resolution regarding a potential infringement on Masimo’s pulse oximetry patent. To keep the Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2 on shelves, Apple will disable the blood oxygen-sensing hardware in both devices. In the future, Apple could be forced to remove the hardware entirely—or it could be allowed to enable the sensor again, depending on how its ongoing International Trade Commission (ITC) appeal goes.
Masimo, a southern California-based medical technology firm, first took aim at Apple in October 2023. The company told the ITC that the Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2 contained pulse oximetry technology patented by Masimo, thus constituting an infringement on the firm’s intellectual property. The ITC responded by sending a ban on Series 9 and Ultra 2 sales to President Biden’s desk. Though Apple refuted Masimo’s claim, it prepared to comply with the ban in December by pulling both devices off US shelves.
The Series 9 and Ultra 2 make up many of Apple’s Watch sales, though, and Apple wasn’t willing to go down without a fight. The company appealed the ITC’s ban—something the ITC has voiced its opposition to—and started brainstorming workarounds to enable it to keep selling both devices. It ultimately settled on disabling the hardware that allows the Series 9 and Ultra 2 to measure users’ blood oxygen levels. The hardware would remain inside the device, but users couldn’t leverage it.
This was an effective band-aid solution. The US Customs and Border Protection ruled Monday that Apple’s workaround “fell outside the scope of” the ITC’s ban, enabling Apple to resume selling both devices. After all, from a consumer perspective, losing access to a piece of existing hardware is almost the same as having that hardware removed wholesale. (Unless—or until—a savvy Apple Watch user figures out how to jailbreak the software.)
Technically, the battle still isn’t over. Apple’s appeal of the ITC ban is ongoing, and all relevant parties must submit their support or opposition to the ban this week. If the ban is lifted, Apple could continue selling the Series 9 and Ultra 2 with the offending pulse oximetry features enabled. But if the ITC and US Customs and Border Protection stay the ban, Apple could be required to drop the sensor entirely.
