Masimo CEO on Apple Watch Blood-Oxygen Sensor: ‘I Really Feel Wholeheartedly That Consumers Are Better Off Without It’

Mark Gurman and Edward Ludlow, reporting for Bloomberg:

Customers should buy pulse oximeters from Masimo or others instead, [Masimo CEO Joe] Kiani said in an interview Thursday on Bloomberg TV. “Apple is masquerading what they are offering to consumers as a reliable, medical pulse oximeter, even though it is not,” he said. “I really feel wholeheartedly that consumers are better off without it.”

Apple said that Kiani’s claims are false and that its watch’s blood oxygen feature is accurate, works very well for customers and in some cases can save lives.

Tell us what you really think, Joe.

Masimo’s CEO said he hasn’t spoken to Apple personally about a settlement, and that nobody from Apple has reached out about coming to an agreement.

“There are court-ordered mediations that I cannot get into that have been held before,” he said. “And there will be additional meetings probably in the future.”

Kiani added that he doesn’t consider those meetings to be steps toward settling litigation. Apple disputed Kiani’s characterization that nobody from Apple has reached out, saying that the company has held a mediation and that a future meeting has been set.

One of the most frequent questions I’ve been getting from readers this week is basically, “Why the hell hasn’t Apple paid to settle this, or just bought the entire company?” I have no idea, but the above sounds like neither side is close to settling.

★ Friday, 19 January 2024