California, Monday, February 12, 2024 – In a significant legal victory, Apple Inc. was granted summary judgment by a federal judge in California on Tuesday, dismissing an antitrust lawsuit filed by AliveCor, a company that develops electrocardiogram (ECG) technology for mobile devices. 1
AliveCor accused Apple of anti-competitive practices, alleging that changes Apple made to its operating system in 2020 restricted the functionality of AliveCor’s KardiaBand, a device using an Apple Watch to capture ECG readings.
They claimed these changes aimed to eliminate competition for Apple’s own ECG feature offered on later Apple Watch models.
Judge Jeffrey White rejected AliveCor’s claims, finding no evidence of anti-competitive behavior by Apple. 2
He held that Apple’s changes were implemented for legitimate reasons, such as improving user privacy and security.
The judge’s decision remains sealed for now, though a redacted version is expected to be made public in the coming weeks.
“AliveCor’s lawsuit challenged Apple’s ability to improve important capabilities of the Apple Watch that consumers and developers rely on, and today’s outcome confirms that is not anti-competitive,” Apple said in a statement.
“We thank the Court for its careful consideration of this case, and will continue to protect the innovations we advance on behalf of our customers against meritless claims.”
AliveCor said it plans to appeal the decision.
- AliveCor to Appeal: https://www.barrons.com/articles/judge-apple-watch-infringement-b6a5a822[↩]
- AliveCor to Appeal: https://9to5mac.com/2021/05/26/alivecor-antitrust-lawsuit-apple/[↩]
