President Biden Approves First ITC Ruling Against Apple, Import Ban on Apple Watch Possible

AliveCor, a California medical device company that accused Apple of patent infringement, says that President Biden has upheld a decision by the International Trade Commission (ITC) that could result in an import ban on the Apple Watch, The Hill reports.

This is the first ITC ruling against Apple that the president has approved. This proves to innovative enterprises that their intellectual property is safeguarded within the legal framework.

ITC Ruling Set Stage for High-Stakes Legal Battle

In December 2022, the ITC determined that Apple had infringed AliveCor's patents for wearable electrocardiograms and demanded a ban on the import of the Apple Watch.

The ITC issued a Limited Exclusion Order (LEO), a cease and desist order and set a $2.00 bond per unit of infringing Apple Watches imported or sold during the Presidential review period, possibly affecting sales of millions of Apple Watches sales, as reported by the ECG tech company in a December news release.

Currently, the order is on hold owing to a dispute before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board. This board recently determined that AliveCor's patents were invalid, prompting Apple to release a statement in December 2022 expressing confidence in their eventual victory.

Assuring Message for Companies' Intelectual Property

Priya Abani, the CEO of AliveCor, remarked that this ruling extends beyond the company and sends a message to innovators that the United States will safeguard patents in order to establish and scale new consumer-beneficial technologies. The decision sets the stage for the two firms' high-stakes legal battle.

"We applaud President Biden for upholding the ITC's ruling and holding Apple accountable for infringing the patents that underpin our industry-leading ECG technology," Abani said in a recent company news release.

A Long Dragging Battle for the ECG IP

In 2018, Apple introduced Apple Watch variants with integrated electrocardiogram sensors, forcing AliveCor to discontinue its heart-monitoring attachment sales.

AliveCor asserted that it shared its technology with Apple for the first time in 2015 to form a collaboration. Since then, the controversy has been ongoing.

The Hill reports that after the ITC ruling, Apple hired the former ITC chairperson to campaign on its behalf. The Cupertino-based tech giant and its friends in Congress claimed that a ban would be detrimental to public health. AliveCor, on the other hand, intends to bring all legal matters before an appeals court.

The decision not to veto the ITC verdict is consistent with the historical trend of presidents of the United States not overruling ITC decisions. Nevertheless, former President Obama blocked a potential ban on iPhone and iPad imports in 2013 after the International Trade Commission determined that Apple had infringed Samsung's patents.

President Biden's decision to support the International Trade Commission's order regarding Apple Watch imports lays the stage for a potential import ban and a high-stakes legal battle between Apple and AliveCor. As the two firms continue to litigate, the case's resolution will have significant repercussions for patent protection and innovation in the technology sector.

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