Apple has secured a legal victory after a U.S. trade tribunal ruled against medical technology firm Masimo in its bid to reinstate an import ban on Apple Watches.
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The United States International Trade Commission decided to close Masimo’s case after declining to review an earlier ruling that found Apple’s redesigned smartwatch models do not infringe Masimo’s patents related to blood-oxygen monitoring technology.
Masimo, which is owned by Danaher, may still appeal the decision to the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. The company has not publicly commented on the ruling.
Apple welcomed the decision, stating that it ensures continued availability of its health features for users. The company also said Masimo has engaged in years of litigation, most of which have been dismissed or rejected.
The dispute stems from Masimo’s allegations that Apple hired its employees and used proprietary pulse-oximetry technology to develop blood-oxygen measurement features in its smartwatches. The legal battle has been ongoing for more than six years.
In 2023, the ITC briefly blocked imports of certain Apple Watch models after finding patent infringement. Apple later removed the blood-oxygen feature from affected devices to comply with the ruling but reintroduced a modified version after receiving clearance from U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
The updated system now displays blood-oxygen data on connected devices such as iPhones rather than directly on the smartwatch screen, a change designed to avoid infringement issues.
Separately, Masimo has pursued additional legal action against Apple in U.S. federal courts, including claims of patent infringement and trade-secret theft, while also challenging Customs’ approval of the redesigned products.
The case remains part of a broader and ongoing legal confrontation between the two companies over wearable health monitoring technology in the competitive global smartwatch market.
