Apple has confirmed it will suspend selling its recently launched Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 smartwatches this week. The move is due to a patent dispute over the blood oxygen sensor used in both models.
9to5Mac reports that back in October, the International Trade Commission decided that Apple had violated the patents of a company called Masimo, which also had developed blood oxygen sensor technology. The ITC ruling meant that the Biden administration started conducting a Presidential Review of this dispute that is scheduled to last 60 days. That means the review period is supposed to end on December 25.
While it is possible that the Presidential Review could result in a reversal of the ITC ruling, Apple sent out this statement to 9to5Mac revealing its plans to suspend sales of the two smartwatches in the US ahead of the decision from the Biden Administration:
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.
Apple’s teams work tirelessly to create products and services that empower users with industry-leading health, wellness, and safety features. 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 suspension of sales only covers Apple"s website and its stores. Third-party retailers and sites are not affected by this decision and can continue to sell their remaining stock of the Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2. However, after December 25, imports of those smartwatches will be banned in the US, which means those retailers won"t be able to restock their depleted inventories.