How will the Apple Watch be redesigned to avoid being banned in the US?
(CNN) — Apple has received the go-ahead to change the way its smartwatches work to avoid a US court ban on certain Apple Watch models. The fix will eliminate a feature that Apple markets as a way for customers to keep a close eye on their health.
According to documents filed in federal court on Monday, Apple successfully proposed to redesign the Apple Watch so that the watch would not have a pulse oximeter function, a medical scanner that measures the concentration of oxygen in the bloodstream. The announcement of the redesign’s approval came from Joseph R. Re, an attorney for Masimo, the Irvine, California-based technology company that successfully sued Apple for patent infringement.
According to the lawsuit, US Customs and Border Protection’s enforcement division determined that Apple’s proposed redesign of the Watcj models would allow the company to continue importing smartwatches into the United States. Although the procedure itself is confidential, Masimo’s lawyer confirmed that the government does not object to the import of Apple Watches as long as they do not contain pulse oximeter functions.
Apple did not respond to a request for comment.
Apple successfully sued to temporarily block a U.S. International Trade Commission decision that barred the company from importing the Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2, as well as other new models, because they infringed Masimo’s patents. The ban took effect on December 26, but on December 27 a federal appeals court temporarily blocked the measure.
According to the company, at the moment Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2 continue to be sold in the United States with the pulse oximeter function. Apple said it expects the appeals court to rule on its request to block the ban as the case unfolds this week.
After the ban took effect last month, Apple said it was considering legal and technical options to resume importing its cutting-edge watches, including submitting redesigned Series 9 and Ultra 2 watches to US authorities for approval. Apple expressed its “strong opposition” to the ban and promised to “take all measures” to return Apple Watch to US customers as soon as possible.
Apple argued in its appeal against the ban that it could “suffer irreparable harm” if the ban remained in place while its appeal was pending. But on Monday, Re noted that Apple can no longer claim irreparable harm from the import ban because an alternative solution has been approved.
The company regularly positions its smartwatches as life-saving devices, which has helped propel the Apple Watch into the top spot, making it the world’s best-selling watch. But his dispute with Masimo threatens to undermine his authority.
On December 18, Apple decided to begin preemptively removing versions of the Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2 from its stores pending the ruling’s entry into force. However, sales resumed soon after the court’s order on December 27.