In November, a federal jury in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California awarded the Irvine, California-based home health monitoring technology developer $634 million in its long-running patent spat with tech giant Apple. The jury sided with Masimo on four patents related to pulse oximetry that it claimed Apple had infringed.
Apple appealed the ruling last month, hoping to get the payment reduced or overturned. That led Masimo to file an opposition to the motion in California’s Central District on Jan. 23. Bloomberg first reported the filing of motion yesterday, Jan. 26.
In the legal filing, Masimo claims that it provided significant evidence to demonstrate that the Apple Watch met the threshold of infringing its patient monitoring patents, while also arguing that Apple officials themselves labeled the devices as monitors. The company highlighted statements it presented from doctors as well, while the court excluded an EMT and physician selected by Apple.
Masimo said Apple’s claims fail to support dismissing the verdict reached by the jury in November. It says Apple’s motion “should be denied in full” and claims a new trial on any issues would be unwarranted.
More on the ongoing legal battle between Masimo and Apple
The spat between Masimo and Apple dates back as far as January 2020. It centers around light-based pulse oximetry technology used by the smartwatches made by both companies. Masimo develops a number of technologies that use pulse oximetry, including its FDA-cleared W1 smartwatch.
A turning point in the dispute arrived in October 2023 when the ITC ruled in Masimo’s favor. The commission recommended a limited exclusion order for infringing Apple Watches with light-based pulse oximetry functionality. It found that Apple violated U.S. laws by incorporating this patented technology in its products. The battle continued last fall, with both companies claiming victories in their spat.
In August, Apple announced plans to introduce a redesigned Blood Oxygen feature for some users of its Apple Watch devices. This came nearly two years after the tech giant paused sales of certain watches amid its battle with Masimo.
After the November ruling, reports suggested that there could be further ramifications, as the International Trade Commission (ITC) was said to have been considering a potential import ban on Apple Watches. The ITC said it plans to investigate the redesigned Apple Watches. It aims to evaluate whether they may circumvent its previous ban and still infringe Masimo patents.
