Apple's legal team successfully shelved an import ban on Apple Watch, allowing the company to continue selling Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 online and in-store. In-store Apple Watch sales resumed on Wednesday after Apple persuaded a federal appeals court to suspend an ITC import ban. One day later, Apple resumed online sales of Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2.
The Apple Watch's home page still says "Currently unavailable" for availability. However, if you click on "shopWatch" (shop watch), the link will take you to a page where you can buy all three watch models.
The recent "Currently Unavailable" labels on Apple Watch models are arguably unprecedented, as no other patent lawsuit has gone as far as Masimo's. The U.S. International Trade Commission once recommended banning the import of any Apple Watch with a blood oxygen detection function, including Apple's latest model.
Since the temporary lifting of the ban is a temporary court order, Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 are still likely to be completely banned, but how much impact this will have on Apple depends on when the ban takes effect, and it may take weeks or even months for the appeal to be concluded.
If the ruling is delayed until September 2024, Apple could release a new Apple Watch, and there may be workarounds to avoid the ban. Therefore, even if existing models are banned from import, Apple will stop selling them to make way for new models (or use this time to import more and supply them to retailers).
Apple Watch Series 9 has an aluminum case and starts at $399. The Apple Watch Ultra 2 is the highest-end model available, starting at $799.