Apple convinced a federal judge on Tuesday to dismiss a lawsuit filed by a Silicon Valley startup accusing it of illegally monopolizing the US market for heart rate monitoring applications for its Apple Watch, according to Reuters.
Judge Jeffrey White of the US District Court in Oakland, California, issued a ruling yesterday against AliveCor, which developed an application to detect irregular heartbeats. AliveCor accused Apple of violating the federal Sherman Antitrust Act and California’s Unfair Competition Law.
The reasons for Judge White’s decision will remain sealed at this time, according to Reuters.
AliveCor said in a statement, “We are deeply disappointed and strongly oppose the court’s decision to dismiss our anti-competitive lawsuit and plan to appeal.”
Meanwhile, Apple said in a statement that the lawsuit challenged its ability to make improvements to the Apple Watch, relied upon by consumers and developers, stating that “today’s result confirms that this does not conflict with competition.”
In an amended complaint, AliveCor claimed that Apple led it to believe it would collaborate on heart rate monitoring technology for the Apple Watch, then proceeded to copy its ideas and embark on a “concerted campaign to enter the market for heart rate analysis.”
The complaint also accused Apple of “updating” the heart rate algorithm for its watches to prevent third parties from detecting irregular heartbeats and offering competing applications.
AliveCor developed the “KardiaBand,” a wristband for the Apple Watch capable of recording electrocardiogram readings.
The company, based in Mountain View, California, also developed the “Kardia” application for analyzing heart rhythm readings on Apple watches, and the “SmartRhythm” application for AI-supported heart rate analysis.
Apple, headquartered in Cupertino, California, denied any wrongdoing, stating that competitors have no right to dictate its design decisions.
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