Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2 back on sell ‘temporarily’ after import ban

In a significant win for Apple, an appeals court temporarily lifted an import ban on Wednesday, allowing the company to sell the latest Apple Watches. Apple stated that the Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2 models would be available in Apple stores from Wednesday and online starting Thursday.

An Apple spokesperson said in a statement:

We are thrilled to return the full Apple Watch lineup to customers in time for the new year. Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2, including the blood oxygen feature, will become available for purchase again in the United States at Apple Stores starting today and from apple.com tomorrow by 12pm PT.

Apple halted the sale of its Series 9 and Ultra 2 watches in stores and online last week. This decision was taken in response to the International Trade Commission’s order in October, which determined that the blood oxygen sensor used in these devices infringed on intellectual property belonging to Masimo, a medical technology company that provides its products to hospitals.

The Biden administration refused to suspend the ITC ban on Monday. Apple filed an appeal with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on Tuesday, continuing to pursue a longer stay while awaiting a response from the ITC by January 10. Apple revealed on Wednesday that they had submitted redesigned Apple Watch models for customs approval, which could potentially void the ban.

The temporary suspension may enable Apple to sell the newest versions of one of their key products during the peak shopping season. Sales from Apple’s wearables business, which includes Apple Watch sales, totaled $39.8 billion in the fiscal year 2023 that ended in September. As a result of the ban, Apple could not directly sell a few models of the Apple Watch in the U.S. for several days.

The suspension of sales did not impact the Apple Watch SE, an older model that lacks a blood oxygen level reader. As long as stock was available, the newest Apple Watch models could still be purchased from retailers like Best Buy or Amazon.