APPLE WATCH IMPORT BAN TEMPORARILY LIFTED –  US Court of Appeals granted a pause on the import ban

Apple has won the right to import two of its most popular smartwatches into the United States, after the appeals court paused a previous ban on imports.

The tech giant was ordered in October to stop importing and selling Series 9 and Ultra 2 watches, following a complaint from medical-monitoring technology company Masimo that it had infringed patents.

Masimo accused Apple of hoovering up its employees, stealing its pulse oximetry technology and incorporating it into Apple watches.

US President Joe Biden’s administration declined to veto the ban by Boxing Day, allowing it to come into effect.

Apple had appealed the ban that was imposed by the US International Trade Commission (ITC). But on Tuesday, it also asked the US Court of Appeals to grant a pause on it in the meantime.

Apple said it would suffer “irreparable harm” if the ban remained for the two weeks it thought it would take to get a response to its appeal from the US ITC.

In a victory for Apple, today the US Court of Appeals granted a pause on the import ban.