A federal jury in California decided on Friday that Apple needs to pay medical device company Masimo $634 million for infringing on a patent related to blood oxygen monitoring technology.
According to Reuters, the jury determined that features in the Apple Watch, such as its workout mode and heart rate notifications, violated Masimo’s patent.
Masimo stated, “This is a significant win in our ongoing efforts to protect our innovations and intellectual property, which is crucial to our ability to develop technology that benefits patients. We remain committed to defending our IP rights moving forward.”
An Apple spokesperson informed Reuters that the company plans to appeal the verdict, mentioning, “The single patent in this case expired in 2022 and is specific to historic patient monitoring technology from decades ago.”
TechCrunch has reached out to Apple for further comments.
The legal battle between Masimo and Apple centers on pulse oximetry, which utilizes an optical sensor to monitor blood flow. Masimo has claimed that Apple recruited some of its employees, including its chief medical officer, and infringed on its patents related to pulse oximetry technology.
In 2023, the U.S. International Trade Commission ruled in favor of Masimo, prohibiting Apple from bringing Apple Watches with blood oxygen monitoring features into the country. This is why recent Apple Watches haven’t included blood oxygen monitoring capabilities.
In August, Apple announced a new version of the feature designed to bypass the ban, which measures and calculates blood oxygen readings on the user’s paired iPhone instead of the Apple Watch itself.
Masimo is currently suing the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol over the approval of importing Apple Watches with the new blood oxygen implementation, while Apple is appealing to have the import ban lifted.
Additionally, Apple countersued Masimo and won the statutory minimum payment of $250 after a jury found that Masimo had infringed on Apple design patents.
