Nikki Rothberg, an Apple spokesperson, has told The Verge that the tech giant will make the Watch Series 9 and the Watch Ultra 2 available to purchase in the US once again. The two wearables will go on sale at the company’s offline stores starting today (December 28, 2023) and on the official website from 03:00 PM ET tomorrow (December 29, 2023). The news comes just hours after the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit paused the ban on the import and sales of the two wearables in the country.
Why had the US imposed a ban on Apple Watch?
Masimo, a health technology company based in Irvine, California, had accused Apple of infringing patents that it holds for the blood oxygen saturation sensor technology, which the tech giant first used in the Watch Series 6, and at the moment, present in the Watch Series 9 and the Watch Ultra 2. Earlier this year, the USITC ruled in favor of Masimo, saying that Apple had infringed two patents from the health California-based company.
As a result, in October 2023, the USITC issued an order to prevent Apple from importing the two smartwatches in the US and selling them in the country. However, the decision didn’t have an immediate effect as it was sent to the President of the United States, Joe Biden, for review. The administration had the authority to veto the decision made by the USITC within 60 days of the ruling but it chose not to.
Therefore, on December 26, 2023, the USITC banned Apple from importing and selling the Watch Series 9 and the Watch Ultra 2 in the US. Apple, in a preemptive move, paused the sales of the two wearables at its offline and online stores on December 24, 2023. The ban, however, didn’t apply to third-party retail stores, such as BestBuy and Walmart, which meant that they could continue to sell the two smartwatches. However, the ban on the import would have eventually stopped them from selling the two wearables.
What’s going to happen now?
Apple has planned to make changes to the Watch Series 9 and the Watch Ultra 2 to avoid patent issues, and the company has asked US Customs to determine if those changes would be enough to avoid patent disputes. Now, the tech giant is waiting to hear the decision from the authority, which is expected to come out before January 12, 2024.
If US Customs rules in favor of Apple, the company can continue to sell the Watch Series 9 and the Watch Ultra 2 in the country. If not, the ban on the import and sale of the two smartwatches could be resumed. In that case, there will be a serious scarcity of the two wearables in the country, and that could directly benefit the Samsung Galaxy Watch 6.
Apple Watch sales resumed in the US after ban pauses
