IRVINE, Calif., Jan. 11 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Masimo , the inventor of Pulse CO-Oximetry(TM) and Measure-Through Motion and Low Perfusion pulse oximetry, announced today that it retained $30,064,684 from a payment from Covidien, following the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals’ October 2009 affirmance of a Federal District Court decision that Tyco Healthcare, now Covidien, violated the antitrust laws through anticompetitive business practices related to the sale of its pulse oximetry products. The decision found that Covidien had unlawfully maintained monopoly power in violation of Section 2 of the Sherman Act, and that Covidien’s sole-source agreements and market-share based compliance pricing contracts constituted unlawful restraints of trade in violation of Section 1 of the Sherman Act and unlawful exclusive dealing in violation of Section 3 of the Clayton Act. The Ninth Circuit also stated that above-cost bundling discounts when combined with sole-source or market-share-based compliance contracts can be anticompetitive when such practices involve a significant portion of the market. The suit was originally filed by Masimo in 2002. The judgment against Covidien for the antitrust violations was for $43.5 Million; however, the total payment, after reimbursement for legal fees, costs, and interest was $58,982,215. The portion of the total payment from Covidien that was not retained by Masimo was paid to the law firm that handled the trial for Masimo.
Joe E. Kiani, Founder and CEO of Masimo, stated: “We are happy to have received the payment, but we are hopeful that the results that we have fought will be served, which is to help improve patient care while also reducing cost by improving caregivers’ access to cost-effective, innovative products. This ruling is the result of one of many efforts Masimo has pursued for many years to open markets so that medical products are judged on their merits rather than artificial restraints on hospital purchasing. Opening competition in the pulse oximetry market has caused pulse oximetry pricing to decrease by over 30%. But, also, many people’s lives were either saved or improved as a direct result of their access to Masimo pulse oximeters. "
Forward Looking Statements
This press release includes forward-looking statements as defined in Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, in connection with the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are based on current expectations about future events affecting us and are subject to risks and uncertainties, all of which are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond our control and could cause our actual results to differ materially and adversely from those expressed in our forward-looking statements as a result of various risk factors, including, but not limited to the factors discussed in the “Risk Factors” section of our most recent reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), which may be obtained for free at the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. Although we believe that the expectations reflected in our forward-looking statements are reasonable, we do not know whether our expectations will prove correct. All forward-looking statements included in this press release are expressly qualified in their entirety by the foregoing cautionary statements. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of today’s date. We do not undertake any obligation to update, amend or clarify these forward-looking statements or the “Risk Factors” contained in our most recent reports filed with the SEC, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required under the applicable securities laws.
CONTACT: Dana Banks of Masimo Corporation, +1-949-297-7348
Web site: http://www.masimo.com/
