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Apple resumes sales of its computer watches in the US. This came after an appeals court temporarily suspended the import ban imposed in a patent dispute.

The current Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 models will be available to order online again on Thursday afternoon (9 p.m. CET), as the company announced on its website. Sales had already started in some Apple Stores on Wednesday, a spokeswoman told the technology blog ‘The Verge’.

Medical technology company Masimo, also an American company, accuses Apple of using a patented technology to measure blood oxygen levels in its watches without a license. In October, Masimo prevailed in proceedings before the US trade authority ITC, which banned the import of the affected Apple Watch models into the US. The White House could overturn the decision with a veto, but decided against it. The dispute does not affect sales in other countries.

The court of appeal grants the urgent request

Apple went to an appeals court on Tuesday and on Wednesday granted the company’s urgent request to temporarily suspend the import ban. The capital’s court in Washington on Wednesday also gave the US trade authority ITC until January 10 to respond to Apple’s request for a longer break.

As a precaution, Apple stopped selling the Series 9 and Ultra 2 watch models in the US last week. However, Apple was still able to offer the cheaper Watch SE version, because it does not have a sensor to measure blood oxygen levels. Other US retailers such as Best Buy were also allowed to sell previously launched shares of all Apple watches. Apple introduced the sensor in the 2020 models.

Masimo: Open for license agreement

The pre-Christmas business, which is important to Apple, will likely be largely completed before the import ban. However, this caused problems for American consumers, for example when it came to exchanges or repairs. Masimo emphasized that they were open to a licensing agreement with Apple. However, the iPhone company denies that it has violated the company’s patents.

Apple tries to circumvent Masimo patents with a software change. A decision should be made by mid-January on whether US authorities will accept this as a solution. (sda/dpa)