Apple has won another significant legal battle in its protracted legal battle with medical technology firm Masimo over blood oxygen technology in the Apple Watch. In a recent decision by the U.S. International Trade Commission, Apple has been given the go-ahead to import and market its redesigned models of the Apple Watch in the United States without a new importation ban.
The ruling is another significant step in a highly contentious court struggle between the two firms, which has gone on over the years and included patent claims, stolen technology allegations and a series of attempts to prevent the sale of Apple devices.
The U.S International Trade Commission has voted to decline an appeal of a previous decision by one of its judges in March. In that previous decision, it was determined that redesigned watches made by Apple do not infringe upon Masimo patents associated with the blood oxygen monitoring technology. The case was closed officially in the favor of Apple since the commission refused to consider the decision of the judge.
This is particularly significant as far as Apple is concerned since the blood oxygen feature has been one of the most discussed health-related tools that can be found in the Apple Watch. Fitness tracking is not the only use of smartwatches these days since they are used to track critical health information throughout the day by many users. The readings of blood oxygen can give users a better insight into their breathing, sleep quality, and wellness.
In the case of Apple, to maintain this feature is not purely a technological issue. It is as well regarding retaining the image of Apple Watch as a high-end health and fitness device. In recent years, Apple has put significant investment in health-related applications, introducing features like heart rate, ECG, sleep-tracking, fall-detection, blood oxygen and so on.
The law suit between Apple and Masimo has been a close follow up due to the fact that it brings together the consumer electronics and the medical technology. Masimo has been known to work on pulse oximetry that is a technique of measuring oxygen in blood. The company has long maintained that Apple neglected its technology and ideas in coming up with health features of the Apple Watch.
Masimo has also claimed that Apple recruited former employees of Masimo and that it used the expertise of these employees in developing comparable devices of blood oxygen monitoring in its products. Masimo argues that Apple moves enabled it to rapidly diversify its health technology offerings whilst enjoying ideas and expertise that Masimo had spent years developing.
Apple has vehemently refuted such accusations. The company has severally insisted that it has invented its own technology and Masimos claims in court are not valid. Apple has also indicated that a good number of legal battles that Masimo had faced in the past have been unsuccessful.
After the most recent decision, Apple stated, “We are pleased with the decision made by ITC, which will help us to provide this valuable health feature to our customers.
The company further included, “Over a period of six years, Masimo has launched an unremitting legal assault against Apple, and almost all its arguments have been dismissed.
These remarks represent the disappointment that accrued on both sides over the years. Big-time lawsuits between big business are not always fought over patents. They are able to influence the opinions of people, stock market prices and future trends of whole industries.
The lawsuit between Apple and Masimo has already had significant implications in the past. Previous court cases compelled Apple to halt the sale of certain models of Apple Watches in the United States. Customers were highly confused then, particularly during the holiday shopping period since they were not sure of the watch models that would still be available.
Apple countered this by re-designing some models of Apple Watch to prevent patent claims filed by Masimo. The redesign factored heavily in the new decision. The updated watches no longer violate the patents in question, which allowed Apple to evade another potential ban, the judge decided.
To the consumer, the recent decision implies that in the near future, there will be no significant change in the supply of Apple Watch. Individuals interested in purchasing more recent models of Apple Watch can anticipate that the devices will not be held up in stores due to significant delays and import limitations.
However, the legal battle may not be completely over. An appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington can still be made by Masimo, which is currently owned by Danaher. What it implies is that the companies might have to be in court fighting it out possibly taking years.
Masimo did not make any comment on the decision made recently. Despite this, the company has demonstrated in the past that it will not stop taking legal courses when it feels that its patents and technology have been abused.
Another growing problem in the technology industry that can be seen in the case is the issue. With companies such as Apple taking more steps into the health care and medical tracking industry, they are venturing more and more into areas traditionally dominated by medical device manufacturers. This opens up new possibilities, yet the threat of additional patent and other legal battles increases.
To a great extent, the dispute between Apple and Masimo is a part of a bigger fight concerning who is going to define the future of the digital health. Old medical businesses can possess decades of research and technical experience and technological giants such as Apple have massive consumer bases and strong product ecosystems.
The recent legal victory gives Apple a few days of relief, although it does not mean that the future health features will escape such issues. With wearables getting increasingly sophisticated and beginning to provide even more comprehensive medical data, patent- and ownership-related lawsuits will probably increase in frequency.
