Apple's sudden bearish news.
On December 18th local time, Apple announced that starting from 3pm local time on December 21st, the official website of Apple in the United States will stop selling the Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2; Apple retail stores in the United States will also remove these two products before Christmas (December 24th). The reason for the suspension of sales is that the US International Trade Commission has ruled that these two Apple Watch products infringe on the blood oxygen sensor patent of medical device company Masimo.
At the same time, the global weight loss drug giant Novo Nordisk's urgent move to crack down on counterfeits has also attracted attention. According to sources, Novo Nordisk's legal team in India is collaborating with India's online e-commerce platform IndiaMART to develop a framework to remove counterfeit "weight loss pills" from the platform and curb illegal sales. Thanks to the popularity of "weight loss pills", Novo Nordisk's stock price has risen nearly 50% this year, with a total market value of 445.9 billion US dollars (approximately RMB 3200 billion).
Suddenly announced: stop selling
On December 18th local time, Apple announced that starting from 3pm local time on Thursday, December 21st, the official website of Apple in the United States will stop selling the Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2; Apple retail stores in the United States will also remove these two products before Christmas (December 24th).
At present, the purchase interface of Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 on Apple's US official website has been taken down, with only the parameter introduction page remaining.
The reason for the discontinuation of these two Apple Watch products is due to a patent dispute between Apple and Masimo. The International Trade Commission (ITC) of the United States has ruled that these two Apple Watch products infringe on Masimo's blood oxygen sensor patent, and therefore requires Apple to "stop and terminate" the import and sale of its Apple Watch with blood oxygen detection function.
It should be pointed out that this case is not yet concluded and will be submitted to the Biden administration for a 60 day presidential review period, with a deadline of December 25th. Apple announced the cessation of sales in order to take preventive measures to comply with the decision of the International Trade Commission.
Apple stated that it will appeal this ruling and deny any claims of infringement. Affected by this, on December 18th local time, during the US stock market, Apple's stock price fell by over 1.6% at one point.
Analysts say that the peak shopping season before Christmas is the peak period for Apple product sales, and announcing the delisting and cessation of sales at this time will have a certain negative impact on Apple product sales.
The holiday shopping season in 2022 (including Christmas) has driven Apple's sales of this category to increase by about 30%.
In response, Apple stated that the International Trade Commission's ban will only affect the sales of the Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2, as these devices provide blood oxygen monitoring functionality. The low-end Apple Watch SE without this sensor will not be affected and will continue to be sold. The sold Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 will also not be affected.
Industry insiders have stated that if the ruling of the International Trade Commission remains unchanged, Apple will not be able to import two banned Apple Watches from foundries for domestic sales in the United States after December 25th, and will also be unable to supply other retailers.
It is reported that the Apple Watch Ultra 2 was launched by Apple in September this year. The product is equipped with the S9 SiP chip and is priced at 6499 yuan (RMB). The Apple store introduces it as the largest and brightest display screen of the Apple Watch to date; The price of the Apple Watch Series 9 starts at 2999 yuan.
Apple's financial report data shows that in the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2023 (as of September 30), sales of wearable devices, home furnishings, and accessories, including Apple Watch and AirPods, were $9.322 billion, a year-on-year decrease of 3.4%. Revenue accounted for 10.4% of the total revenue in the fourth quarter.
It should be pointed out that the current suspension of Apple sales only affects the US market, and other markets have not been affected.
In addition, due to the ban only restricting Apple's official direct sales of two Apple Watches, American consumers can still purchase related products from other sales channels such as Amazon.
3 trillion dollar giant suddenly takes action
On December 19th local time, Reuters reported, citing a source, that Novo Nordisk's legal team in India is collaborating with India's online e-commerce platform IndiaMART to develop a framework to remove counterfeit "weight loss pills" from the platform and curb illegal sales.
It is reported that both sides have been discussing this matter since October this year.
IndiaMART is one of India's largest online platforms, and a US government agency has included the company in the 2022 "notorious market" list, emphasizing that counterfeit goods on the platform remain a "serious problem".
According to a survey, from September to November this year, dozens of product lists named Wegovy and Ozempic appeared on IndiaMART. Although the platform has removed many of its products, some still remain on the website.
Since their launch, Wegovy and Ozempic from Novo Nordisk have caused a sensation in the global pharmaceutical market. Wegovy is a drug to control body weight, while Ozempic is a drug to treat diabetes, and its effective ingredient is semaglutide. And Novo Nordisk is the sole patent holder of Smegglutide.
Benefiting from the popularity of "weight loss pills", Novo Nordisk's stock price continues to soar. As of the latest closing, its stock price was at $98.98, with a cumulative increase of 48% over the year. The total market value has risen to $445.9 billion (approximately RMB 3200 billion).
According to the financial report, in the first three quarters of 2023, Wegovy achieved revenue of DKK 21.729 billion (approximately RMB 22.8 billion), a year-on-year increase of 492%.
At present, Novo Nordisk's "weight loss pills" have not been approved for sale in India.
Vikrant Shrotriya, Managing Director of Novo Nordisk India, stated that the company plans to officially launch Wegovy in the country in 2026.
The huge demand for Novo Nordisk's weight loss pills has led to a surge in counterfeit drugs worldwide. Sources say that since Novo Nordisk contacted IndiaMART in early October, dozens of counterfeit products have been removed from the platform.
A global spokesperson for Novartis stated that the pharmaceutical company regularly searches for suspicious or illegal online sales and collaborates with online platforms "where possible" to ensure they can prevent or respond to such illegal sales.
Novo Nordisk also acknowledges that it is "difficult to track" illegal sellers in India.