Posted on 10/31/2023 12:35:32 PM PDT by Red Badger
Apple could see one of its leading products barred from being imported into the United States sometime around Christmas unless the White House steps in or a patent dispute is resolved.
The U.S. International Trade Commission ruled last week that specific models of the Apple Watch breach patents held by the medical gadget designer Masimo. The company now has 60 days either to resolve the matter or face an outright ban. The current patent series, as they stand, only apply to Apple Watch models from the Series 6,7, 8, and 9 collections since they contain the medical trackers that appear to resemble Masimo's patents.
If the matter is not resolved by Dec. 26, the company could see the latest versions of its products unavailable to U.S. users in 2024. American consumers will have till Christmas to get the latest Apple Watch, barring any legal changes.
Masimo alleges that Apple's reputation for innovation is unearned and that it has made a practice of "efficient infringement," according to the New York Times. This is when a company uses another company's technology and deals with the legal fallout afterward. Apple, as a trillion-dollar company, has the funding required to shoulder any possible legal fees or court cases.
Apple maintains that it respected Masimo's intellectual property, according to court documents. However, Masimo presented evidence that Apple had hired its former chief medical officer and 20 other employees from the company. This indirect process would have allowed Apple access to the intellectual power behind Masimo in designing its own products. For example, this could apply to Apple reportedly adapting the oxygen tracker in the Apple Watch from Masimo's past work.
If Apple wants to challenge this possible import ban, it can challenge the ITC's decision in the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, according to Bloomberg Law. This would not delay the ban, however. The company could also lobby the U.S. trade representative to veto the ban.
If the import ban is not stopped before Dec. 26, the ban will last until August 2028.
I just read the patent Rio found. They threw in the kitchen sink. On the other hand, Masimo has patents still active on this stuff going back to 1998… which is about maximum for design patents and they list them as being incorporated into this patent.
However, nowhere in their claims do I see one for a micrsensor built into a wristwatch computer like Apple’s design… and this patent seems more about detecting more than just oxygen in the blood.
They seem to have a lot of patents they’ve acquired lately, but knowing Apple’s record for assuring they license what needs to be licensed, and that Apple hired Maximo’s director of development, I bet they are on firm ground.
Masimo has a market cap of about one Billion dollars… Apple could just buy them.
Masimo’s patent was issued, like so many others in the tech world, not based on a novel/unique concept, but on a general idea - and if they are successful, proves that the patent is overly-broad.
Exactly - the general method of external measure of Pulse Oxygen has been around FAR FAR longer than this predatory company has even existed.
Technology patents are about “how” something is done. Not what something does.
You can have a 100 different ways of measuring oxygen in the blood — each with its own patent.
For example, lookup how many mouse traps patents there are.
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