AliveCor, a medical device company, has faced another defeat in its long-running legal battle against Apple.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit upheld a ruling stating that AliveCor’s patents for electrocardiogram (EKG) technology are not valid. This decision means that Apple’s smartwatches will not face a second import ban from the International Trade Commission (ITC).
The dispute started in 2021 when AliveCor accused Apple of infringing on its EKG patents and took the case to the ITC. The ITC initially ruled in AliveCor’s favor and recommended an import ban on Apple Watches featuring the EKG function. However, the ban was put on hold because the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) ruled that the three AliveCor patents in question were invalid. To enforce the ban, AliveCor needed to win its appeal against the PTAB decision—but it failed to do so.
AliveCor expressed disappointment with the court’s decision, with its Chief Business Officer, Sanjay Voleti, stating that the company would continue exploring legal options to defend its intellectual property. Meanwhile, Apple welcomed the ruling, emphasizing its commitment to developing innovative health features for its devices.
Interestingly, another medical device company, Masimo, used a similar legal strategy and succeeded in securing an ITC import ban against Apple. Masimo’s case involved patents related to the Apple Watch’s blood oxygen sensor rather than EKG technology. To comply with the ruling, Apple disabled the blood oxygen sensor in newly sold Apple Watches in the U.S.
While AliveCor’s legal battle continues, Apple remains unscathed for now, keeping its EKG feature intact in its wearable devices.
