The redesigned Apple Watch blood oxygen feature is under investigation by the ITC.

The ITC says that it has justification to see if Apple's revised pulse oximeter infringes on Masimo's patent.

Following an import ban on specific Apple Watch models containing the blood oxygen feature, the International Trade Commission (ITC) found Apple in violation. Apple's attempts to circumvent the ban were unsuccessful, and the company opted not to license Masimo's technology, leading to the feature's removal in the U.S.

In August, Apple announced an updated version of the feature with watchOS 11.6.1 and iOS 18.6.1. The Apple Watch still gathers blood oxygen data, but the analysis now occurs on a connected iPhone. Results are displayed in the Health app under the Respiratory section.

The International Trade Commission (ITC) agreed and issued an import ban blocking affected Apple Watch units with the feature from getting shipped to the U.S. Apple tried to come up with a workaround, but that became impossible, and Apple decided against licensing Masimo's technology. As a result, the tech giant had no choice but to shut down the feature in the U.S.

However, the ITC has initiated a new proceeding to assess whether Apple's revised solution also infringes on Masimo's patents. The ITC stated it "has determined to institute a combined modification and enforcement proceeding" to ascertain if the updated pulse oximetry feature complies with the import ban that initially forced Apple to disable the function. This matter will be the sole focus of the commission's review.

Masimo is attempting to pressure the Commission through its district court litigation and current petition, to exceed its statutory authority and prevent Americans from accessing Apple's redesigned Blood Oxygen feature.

The ITC clarifies that the redesigned version wasn't part of the original inquiry, justifying a new procedure. A key consideration for the ITC is whether processing data and displaying results on a paired iPhone removes Apple's infringement on Masimo's patents.

Apple argued during initial hearings that Masimo's complaint involved a Masimo Watch unavailable at the time. Apple stated that "Masimo has no meaningful domestic industry product that would benefit from this exclusion—its asserted domestic industry product, the Masimo W1, has still not been sold in more than de minimis quantities even two years after the conclusion of the underlying Investigation, and Masimo no longer sells any version of the Masimo W1 to consumers."

The pulse oximeter measures blood oxygen saturation, indicating how much oxygen red blood cells carry from the lungs. Healthy readings typically range from 95% to 100%. Readings below 90% may indicate an underlying health condition.

During the pandemic, individuals with readings below 80% without typical symptoms like shortness of breath were considered acclimated to low oxygen levels, suggesting severe COVID. Low readings often signaled the need for medical attention before symptoms worsened.

You can view the ITC's order by tapping on this link.