Apple Watch ban may vanish $300-$400 million from holiday sales

Apple on Monday announced to pause of the sales of the latest smartwatches – Watch series 9 and Watch Ultra 2 which may wipe away $300-$400 million from its holiday season sales.

Apple’s latest decision reflects after the International Trade Commission (ITC) found the company infringing on a patent for Blood Oxygen measurement claimed by medical technology company Masimo.

Market estimates from Wedbush Securities analyst Dan Ives reveal that the ongoing crisis could cost Apple about $300-$400 million.

That may be a relative drop in its revenue as the analyst expects Apple to bring $120 billion from its fourth-quarter sales this year. This also includes the holiday shopping season.

The analyst believes that the ban may not affect much of Apple but it may not also be good for the company’s image.

Meanwhile, an Apple representative confirmed that it disagrees with the ITC’s order and exploring options to ensure that these smartwatches resume availability for consumers in the US.

A Bloomberg report suggests that Apple is compiling a software update that would work around ITC’s ruling. However, there’s no guarantee that this would prevent the ban effects as the watch still uses the related hardware technology.

Meanwhile, the White House is also tracking the entire scenario and said that it’s closely monitoring the situation at hand. The White House holds the power to veto the ban on Apple Watches but currently, there is no sign of that happening.

(source – BusinessInsider)