The Apple Watch sales ban does not actually block sales of the Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 at this time, but these two models are no longer available for purchase in the United States between December 21 and December 27, 2023 The court battle is ongoing, and the future of these watches still hangs in the balance

This is a big deal because the Apple Watch 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 are two of the best smartwatches on the market today If you want to know what's going on, read this article

In October, the US International Trade Commission (ITC) upheld a ruling earlier in the year that Apple infringed a patent owned by Masimo (a small medical technology company) with the 2020 Apple Watch Series 6 (now discontinued)

As noted above, the dispute is over the SpO2 sensor found on the back of most Apple Watch models dating back to 2020 In essence, Masimo claims that Apple has stolen its technology and continues to do so with every release after Series 6 Apple denies this and instead counterclaims that Masimo stole the entire Apple Watch design

The October ITC ruling automatically triggered a 60-day presidential review period President Biden and his administration could have vetoed the ruling, but this period ended on December 25 and the ban remained in place; on December 26, US Trade Representative Catherine Tye issued a statement confirming that she had no intention of overturning the original decision

Prior to that date, Apple voluntarily removed the Ultra 2 and Series 9 from online and store shelves ahead of schedule in anticipation of the President's failure to intervene Future Developments Apple will appeal the ITC's decision to the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit Unfortunately for Tim Cook and Apple, the ITC has responded rather forcefully to the company's attempts to seek an injunction against sales, but it remains to be seen what the court will decide

The Apple Watch accounts for roughly 50% of the global smartwatch market Thus, this is a pretty big deal for the Cupertino tech giant However, several factors are mitigating the impact on consumers and Apple's bottom line

For one, the ban only affects the US market The "Apple Watch sells particularly well in its home market [But] Apple makes the majority of its sales outside the US," said Avi Greengart, chief analyst at Techsponential

It also couldn't come at a better time for Apple Greengart says, "In the US, most of the holiday sales will occur before December 24, when the ban goes into effect, so the financial impact will begin after the holiday season"

Finally, even if sales of the Ultra 2 and Series 9 are halted, Apple will continue to sell the Apple Watch SE in Apple's online and physical stores The SE is also the most affordable smartwatch available

How long will American customers be unable to purchase the Apple Watch Ultra 2 and Series 9? 'It's hard to predict,' Greengart said 'Unless the ITC ruling is vetoed, or unless the ruling is overturned by an appeals court, the watch will be removed from the market'

Apple is working to overturn the decision by filing an appeal (via AppleInsider) seeking an interim block on the sales ban while the International Trade Commission prepares its response Also being questioned is whether two redesigned versions of the Apple Watch (the details of which have been redacted in the document) are exempt from the ruling, which could allow Apple to continue selling the smartwatch without further patent infringement

Of course, Apple and Masimo could always settle and avoid all the hoopla and nasty press Apple may also roll out the new Apple Watch Series 10 - which we just got a glimpse of - and Ultra 3 earlier than planned to make up for it, but this would be just wishful thinking

Large retailers like Amazon and Best Buy can continue to sell the Apple Watch Ultra 2 and Series 9 past the December 25 deadline However, once the pallets of these devices are depleted, no new shipments will be made until things settle down

Greengart expects that both devices will be available through third-party retailers until most of January, but no later Apparently, Apple has instructed its staff not to refer customers to stores that continue to sell the watches

If you already have an Apple Watch 9 or Ultra 2, it may be difficult to get Apple to repair it Post-sale ban reports indicate that Apple will not repair or replace hardware for the Apple Watch 6 and later, which includes all watches with the patent-infringing SpO2 measurement technology Issues caused by software or accessories will receive support and will be repaired as usual if covered by warranty or AppleCare

Apple is by no means backed into a corner by the Masimo pulse rate meter patent saga, even if things look dire The best outcome for Apple," Greengart said, "is for President Biden to veto the ITC ruling He adds, "The next best thing is for Apple to quickly prevail in the appeals court"

"Beyond that," Greengart added, "a settlement with Masimo (is best), but Apple would almost certainly prefer to discourage its rivals from competing through the legal system rather than the market

The Apple Watch ban case is almost certainly headed to the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit No one knows how long the case will be heard there The US court system is notoriously lax

For its part, Apple appears to be doing everything it can internally to resolve the issue; Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports that the company is working on a software update that it believes will satisfy US Customs Gurman said the company is working on a software update that he believes could satisfy US Customs Gurman said Cupertino engineers are racing to make changes to the device's algorithms, calling it "the riskiest engineering effort Apple has ever undertaken"

We will update this article as more details become available Stay tuned