Apple Wins Another Round in AliveCor Legal Battle Over Heart Rate Tech

Apple has achieved a significant legal victory against AliveCor, a heart monitoring company. A federal appeals court has upheld a previous ruling that found Apple's product improvements to the Apple Watch to be lawful. AliveCor had accused Apple of illegal monopolization in the watchOS heart rate analysis app market. They claimed Apple deliberately changed its heart rate algorithm to disrupt their device's ability to detect irregular heart rhythms. AliveCor argued for the reinstatement of the older algorithm, asserting Apple aimed to stifle competition. Apple countered that AliveCor had no right to dictate its product design choices. The court agreed with Apple, stating that forcing the company to support older technology would involve excessive judicial oversight. The Ninth Circuit affirmed Apple's win, concluding their refusal to share specific data was not anticompetitive. The court also rejected AliveCor's claim that Apple had a duty to share proprietary data with rivals. This ruling marks Apple's second major legal win against AliveCor recently, following the invalidation of AliveCor's heart monitoring patents. Despite disappointment, AliveCor stated it would continue to pursue legal avenues.