The day Apple definitely didn’t want to arrive came yesterday.
Aso of Thursday, Apple stopped selling the Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 in its online store in the United States, with the devices pulled from sale just days ahead of when an Apple Watch import ban goes into effect. When attempting to purchase an Apple Watch Series 9 or Apple Watch Ultra 2 to the online store, the devices say “currently unavailable.” Apple has also removed refurbished Apple Watch Series 7 and Series 8 models from its website.
The company on Monday stated that it would need to pause sales of its Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 models in order to comply with an International Trade Commission (IRC) order related to the Apple Watch blood oxygen monitoring technology from being imported into the United States. The ITC enforced after deciding that the Apple Watch blood oxygen sensor violates patents owned by medical device company Masimo.
Customers can still purchase the Apple Watch models in question from Apple’s retail store locations, but Apple will stop store sales after December 24 in order to comply with the ruling. Third-party stores like Target, Walmart, and Best Buy can continue to sell the Apple Watch until supplies run out. Apple will be able to sell the Apple Watch SE, as it does not have a blood oxygen sensor.
Sales could be reinstated should the White House veto the import ban, and the Biden administration has until December 25 to review the order and determine whether or not to intervene. Should the White House not veto the import ban, Apple will not be able to sell the Apple Watch until it removes the infringing technology.
Apple is planning to appeal as soon as it can on December 26, and the company said it is “pursuing a range of legal and technical options” to get the Apple Watch models back on store shelves as soon as possible.
Apple has posited that a software fix might satisfy the requirement, and Apple engineers are said to be adjusting how oxygen saturation is determined and how the data is provided to customers. Apple said that it is working to submit a workaround to US Customs to get the ban lifted, but it is unclear if a software fix will be sufficient because the patents in question pertain to the hardware.
Stay tuned for additional details as they become available.
Via MacRumors