Apple has confirmed that it will suspend sales of the Apple Watch Ultra 2 and Apple Watch Series 9 in the United States due to an ongoing patent dispute related to the blood oxygen sensor featured in both wearables.
In a statement given to 9to5Mac, Apple said the following:
“A Presidential Review Period is in progress regarding an order from the US International Trade Commission on a technical intellectual property dispute pertaining to Apple Watch devices containing the Blood Oxygen feature. While the review period will not end until December 25, Apple is preemptively taking steps to comply should the ruling stand. This includes pausing sales of the Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 from Apple.com starting December 21, and from Apple retail locations after December 24.”
This means that on the 21st, the smartwatches will no longer be available on Apple.com and that they will be pulled from Apple retail locations on December 24th. This follows the International Trade Commission’s (ITC) decision regarding the patent dispute with medical equipment company Masimo, which is currently under a 60-day presential review period. Apple has preemptively complied with the ruling in case it doesn’t fall in its favour.
If U.S. President Joe Biden does decide to veto, the tech giant can still appeal the ruling in the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, reach a settlement with Masimo or release a software update that removes the patent-infringing features from the Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2.
“Apple’s teams work tirelessly to create products and services that empower users with industry-leading health, wellness, and safety features,” said Apple in a statement sent to multiple publications. “Apple strongly disagrees with the order and is pursuing a range of legal and technical options to ensure that Apple Watch is available to customers. Should the order stand, Apple will continue to take all measures to return Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 to customers in the U.S. as soon as possible.”
The ruling only applies to the Series 9 and Ultra 2 and does not include third-party retailers like Amazon or Best Buy. Apple’s smartwatch has featured a blood oxygen sensor since the Series 6 in 2020.
MobileSyrup has reached out to Apple for more information regarding whether the Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 will continue to be sold in Canada.
Update 18/12/2023 11:04am: MobileSyrup can confirm the Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 will continue to be sold in Canada.
MobileSyrup may earn a commission from purchases made via our links, which helps fund the journalism we provide free on our website. These links do not influence our editorial content. Support us here.
