Apple Watch Redesign Gets Early OK, Court Affirms Import Ban (1)

A redesigned Apple Watch doesn’t infringe two Masimo Corp. patents, a US trade judge found, a day before an appeals court upheld the US International Trade Commission’s 2023 order barring Apple Inc.'s imports of certain smartwatch models.

Apple’s Redesign 2 Watch doesn’t directly infringe asserted claims of US Patent Nos. 10,912,502 and 10,945,648 and doesn’t induce infringement when used with an iPhone in the US, according to Administrative Law Judge Monica Bhattacharyya’s enforcement initial determination issued Wednesday at the US International Trade Commission.

If ratified by the full ITC, Bhattacharyya’s finding could pave the way for Apple to escape the 2023 import ban on Apple Watches with blood-oxygen features found to infringe Masimo’s patents.

On Thursday, a three-judge panel of the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit found “no error in the Commission’s domestic industry determination, its validity rulings, or its infringement findings,” as it affirmed the ITC’s 2023 decision in a precedential opinion.

An Apple spokesperson said the company is “pleased with” the Bhattacharyya’s findings but disagrees with the Federal Circuit’s decision and is “evaluating all avenues for further review.”

A Masimo spokesperson declined to comment on the developments.

The cases are In the Matter of Certain Light-Based Physiological Measurement Devices and Components Thereof, USITC, Inv. No. 337-TA-1276, enforcement initial determination issued 3/18/26; and Apple Inc. v. International Trade Commission, Fed. Cir., No. 24-1285, precedential opinion affirming issued 3/19/26.