A federal jury ruled Friday that the Masimo smartwatch infringed on Apple patents, but the company isn’t getting a big payday.
According to Bloomberg Law, the company only sought the legal minimum of $250, and that was it. “We’re not in this for the money,” Apple lawyer John Desmarais told jurors. Instead, he said he hopes the company will force Massimo “to stop copying our designs.”
The company may have been disappointed in that regard. The jury found that Masimo’s W1 Freedom and health module and the original design of the original charger infringed Apple design patents and that the infringement was willful.
However, Masimo said in a statement that the findings only apply to “discontinued modules and chargers,” not current products.
“Apple primarily sought an injunction against Masimo’s current products, and the jury’s verdict is a victory for Masimo on that issue,” the medical device company said.
This trial was the result of Apple’s counterclaim in a legal battle with Masimo that began with Masimo’s claim that the Apple Watch’s pulse oximetry function infringed its patents. This feature allows watch owners to measure blood oxygen levels. Apple disabled this feature on the Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2, and the new Series 10 is also missing it. These restrictions apply only to the United States, and Apple is appealing the import ban on models with the controversial feature.
Desmerais reportedly told the jury that pulse oximetry had “nothing to do with this case.”
