Federal appeals court pauses ban on import of Apple smartwatches

The U.S. International Trade Commission, or ITC, had banned all imports and sales of certain Apple smartwatch models in October after ruling the models infringed on a patent held by medical company Masimo. The ban was slated to go into effect on Tuesday. It was temporarily paused by an appeals court on Wednesday. The court agreed to pause the ban while weighing Apple’s motion for a longer injunction. The court also gave the ITC about two weeks to decide whether re-designed versions of the smartwatches may be sold.

What kind of patent did Apple allegedly violate? Masimo alleges that Apple stole its patented pulse oximetry technology used in certain smartwatches to read oxygen levels in blood. The feature debuted in the 2020 Series 6 smartwatch model and is featured in other smartwatches, like Series 9 and Ultra 2. Masimo also has accused Apple of hiring away its employees to implement the new technology. Apple has also filed a retaliatory lawsuit against Masimo.

Dig deeper: Read John Dawson’s report in WORLD Magazine on Apple by the numbers.