Key Takeaways
- Early iterations of Masimo’s smartwatches were found to violate Apple’s design patents by a federal jury.
- Apple was compensated $250 for the violation.
- After the infringement verdict, the tech giant had intended to stop Masimo from selling its smartwatches, but they were not given an injunction.
Apple claims that an early version of Masimo’s smartwatch and charger violated two of its design patents, which is the most recent development in a protracted dispute between the tech giant and the medical technology firm.
The jury upheld the allegation that Masimo had willfully violated Apple’s patents with its charger, health module, and Freedom and W1 smartwatches, according to the verdict form.
Even though Apple only got $250 in damages, money wasn’t the main objective. Instead, Apple was requesting an injunction to stop Masimo from making their smartwatches available for purchase.
When the jury decided that Masimo’s current range of smartwatches did not violate Apple’s design patents, that hope was crushed. It’s encouraging and represents a kind of win for the medical technology business in its ongoing conflict with Apple.
Apple and Masimo have been at odds for a long time.
After talks about partnership, Masimo alleged in 2021 that Apple had stolen their personnel and pulse oximetry technology. It claimed that Apple had violated its patents with the 2020 Apple Watch Series 6, the company’s first model with blood-oxygen monitoring.
According to Reuters, a judge declared in January 2023 that Apple had infringed Masimo’s rights in relation to “light-based technology for reading blood oxygen levels.”
In October 2023, the US International Trade Commission issued an order prohibiting the importation of the Apple Watch Ultra 2 and Series 9. Beginning on December 21, 2023, the prohibition was in place until it was lifted in early 2024.
After filing an appeal, Apple declared that on January 18, 2024, new models of the Ultra 2 and Series 9 would be available for purchase in the US, excluding the blood oxygen level tracking capabilities.
Apple filed a “retaliatory” patent case against Masimo in 2022, alleging that the latter had stolen Apple Watch functionality for its own wearable. Moreover, it accused the company of using litigation “to make way for Masimo’s own watch.”
Positive Developments in Health Technology
For Apple, its most recent patent case is a mixed success. Despite receiving a $250 damages award, Masimo was still able to sell their smartwatches in the US. The market for wearable technology can only benefit from this.
Given Apple’s failure to obtain an injunction against Masimo, it appears unlikely that the company will win this battle, even though it could set a precedent for other large tech companies to take similar legal action, monopolizing the market and discouraging competition in the development of future health monitoring features.
In a competition for the most cutting-edge wearables, this opens the way for smaller health and medical technology companies to challenge the tech giants and begin or continue developing their own health monitoring features.
