Today we bring you one of those news that we never thought we would have to give: Apple will not be able to sell its most advanced watch in its own country due to a patent dispute.
Apple has announced in a statement that the company will stop selling the Apple Watch Series 9 and the Apple Watch Ultra 2 in the United States from the Apple website after 3pm ET on December 21, 2023.
You will still be able to buy in-store until December 24th, but then physical sales will also end. Outside of the US, both models will continue to be sold.
A measure never seen before in the American giant
According to 9to5Mac, Apple will not be able to restock other retailers, so any store as big as Best Buy and Target will soon be out of stock… especially now during Christmas.
It is the result of a patent battle between Apple and a company called Masimo over the blood oxygen sensor in the Apple Watch, which has led to a ruling by the International Trade Commission against Apple, resulting in this ban. Although Apple plans to continue fighting the ruling, as expected.
This is what Apple has commented about it:
“A presidential review period is currently underway regarding a U.S. International Trade Commission order on a technical intellectual property dispute relating to Apple Watch devices containing the Blood Oxygen feature. Although the review period will not conclude until December 25th, Apple is taking precautionary measures to comply with the ruling if upheld. This includes the discontinuation of sales for Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 on Apple.com starting December 21st, and at Apple retail locations starting December 24th,” it begins.
“In the event that the order is upheld, Apple will continue to take all necessary measures to return the Apple Watch Series 9 and the Apple Watch Ultra 2 to customers in the United States as soon as possible”, concludes.
Which models will be banned this Christmas
Of the models that Apple currently sells, only the Apple Watch Series 9 and the Apple Watch Ultra 2 include blood oxygen detection technology, which means that the Apple Watch SE will continue to be sold, as it is not included in the patent infringement case.
Of course, since the case was presented before the release of the latest Apple Watch, the previous models would have also been included, but since Apple has discontinued them anyway, there is no ban against them, and Apple says there will be no impact on these models for people who already own them.
At the moment, this prohibition order is still in the presidential review period, so it is possible that President Biden may still veto the ban, which would mean that Apple could continue selling it until the next phase of their legal battle with Masimo.
However, it may not help the fact that Apple has also lost a patent lawsuit with a company called AliveCor, which weighs heavily on this matter.
