Apple to appeal US watch ban

WASHINGTON – Apple said on Tuesday it will appeal a US ban on its latest smartwatch models after the Joe Biden administration opted to not veto a ruling on patent infringements.

The ban on Apple’s latest smartwatch models came into effect Tuesday, with the Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 no longer available in stores or online.

The ban is the latest legal tussle involving big tech companies over valuable patents that has also seen Google battle in court against Sonos in a fight over speaker tech.

The United States International Trade Commission (ITC) decided in October to ban the Apple Watch models over a patented technology for detecting blood-oxygen levels.

The order stemmed from a complaint to the commission in mid-2021 by medical device maker Masimo Corp, which accused Apple of infringing on “light-based oximetry functionality.”

“After careful…