Apple Ceases Sales of Watches with Blood Oxygen Feature After Ruling Against Masimo in Patent Dispute

Masimo Corp. CEO Joe Kiani is waging a legal fight with Apple Inc. over a blood oxygen feature and claims that consumers are better off without Apple's version of the technology.

Apple has stopped selling smartwatches with the blood oxygen feature due to a ruling by the US International Trade Commission that found the technology violated Masimo patents.

Kiani claims that Masimo's offering has been approved by the US Federal Drug Administration, unlike Apple's implementation of blood oxygen sensing.

Apple's watch does on-demand spot checks and intermittent background checks for blood oxygen levels, while Masimo's offering is a continuous monitor.

Kiani hasn't spoken to Apple personally about a settlement and disputes the characterization that Masimo is throwing everything it can at Apple to see what sticks.

Apple says that its watch's blood oxygen feature is accurate and works very well for customers. The company has held a mediation and a future meeting has been set.

Apple disputes Masimo's claims that its feature is inaccurate and that nobody from Apple has reached out about coming to an agreement.