Apple
is readying itself to remove a blood-oxygen sensor from some of its smartwatches in an effort to avoid an import ban over a patent dispute. However, the consumer-technology giant hasn’t given up its fight yet.
Apple
has made plans for technical changes to the watches, including the removal of the blood-oxygen sensor, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing a legal filing.
The changes would potentially settle Apple’s patent dispute with medical-technology company Masimo and its sister company called Ceracor Laboratories on sensors that measure blood-oxygen levels. That dispute briefly halted sales of the Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 due to an import ban.
Apple hasn’t admitted defeat in the dispute yet. The company told the WSJ that the blood-oxygen feature would continue to be available on the watches for now, as it waits for the outcome of a request for a permanent stay on the import ban.
If the stay is granted, Apple won’t need to remove the blood-oxygen feature while it goes through an appeals process which could take a year or more.
The removal of the blood-oxygen feature is unlikely to significantly affect Apple stock. The Apple Watch accounted for around 5% of its fiscal 2023 sales.
Apple shares were down 1.6% in premarket trading on Tuesday, while
Masimo
was broadly flat. Apple didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment from Barron’s early on Tuesday.
Write to Adam Clark at [email protected]
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