A significant preliminary verdict has been reached in the patent infringement lawsuit between Apple and medical technology company Masimo. According to Reuters, a federal jury in California earlier ruled in favor of Masimo, finding Apple infringing on Masimo's patents.Tracking blood oxygen concentration The patented technology (blood-oxygen levels) must pay $6.34 million in damages.
The jury found that physical training and heart rate function were infringing offenses.
The core of this case lies in whether Apple infringed on Masimo's patents related to blood oxygen sensors. The jury determined that evidence of infringement could be found in the "Workout" and "Heart Rate" apps on the Apple Watch, thus concluding that Apple did indeed infringe on their patents.
Apple: Patent has expired, will appeal.
Apple disagrees with the ruling and plans to appeal. An Apple spokesperson emphasized, "The single patent in this case expired in 2022 and only involves historical patient monitoring technology from decades ago."
Masimo also sued U.S. Customs.
Prior to this, Masimo accused Apple of infringing on its "pulse oximeter" technology patent. This case led to the intervention of the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC), which forced Apple to temporarily suspend the sale of Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 in the United States starting last year.
In an attempt to circumvent the ban, Apple released an emergency update in August of this year for the redesigned blood oxygen monitoring feature on the Apple Watch Series 9, Apple Watch Series 10, and Apple Watch Ultra 2. Although this redesigned version was approved by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Masimo immediately filed a new lawsuit, accusing U.S. Customs of exceeding its authority by allowing these updated Apple Watches to be sold in the U.S. market without consulting Masimo.
The $6.34 million award in damages awarded by the California jury has clearly added a new variable to the multi-front patent war between Apple and Masimo.
