Apple will begin a sales pause of its Apple Watch Series 9 and Watch Ultra 2 as it anticipates a possible ban from the ITC following a patent dispute over the watch's blood-oxygen sensor

Apple has announced that sales of its two recently released Apple Watch models, the Series 9 and Watch Ultra 2, would be halted awaiting an expected ban by the US International Trade Commission.

The federal agency is contemplating a ban due to a disagreement over a patent for the technology used in Apple's latest Watch models' blood-oxygen sensor.

Wired reported that online sales on the company website will stop at 3 p.m. Eastern on December 21, while in-store inventory will be unavailable at retail locations starting December 24. 

Due to the ITC's ban only applying to Apple, the watches will continue to be sold on online retailers such as Amazon and Best Buy for the time being.

The proposed ban also only applies to watch imports into the US, hence both watches will remain accessible in other countries.

The suspension is the result of a long-running dispute with the medical tech company Masimo which sued Apple back in 2021. Apple was accused of infringing on one of the company's patents pertaining to light-based blood-oxygen monitoring. 

A judge ruled that Apple had infringed on the patents, and the ITC upheld that ruling in October. The decision triggered a 60-day presidential review period that expires on December 25, making Apple take proactive efforts to comply.

Apple has various alternatives for reintroducing wearables to the market by either filing an appeal in federal court, or settle with Masimo by deactivating the blood-oxygen detecting features. 

More information regarding the Watch 9 and Ultra 2's future plans should be accessible when the review period ends on December 25.

However, many smartwatches look alike and have similar features, so it's rare for a company to successfully block the sales of a competitor by claiming patent infringement.