Under Armour just expanded its beachhead into the rapidly growing battle for your quantified body.
Billing the move as "the creation of the world's largest digital health and fitness community," Under Armour announced it is adding two of the biggest mobile fitness apps — Endomondo and MyFitnessPal — into the company's existing suite of fitness trackers that already includes MapMyFitness and the recently launched UA Record.
Under Armour is paying $475 million for San Francisco-based MyFitnessPal and its 80 million registered users, while Denmark-based Endomondo and its 20 million mostly European users is fetching $85 million.
All told, "these acquisitions will expand Under Armour's Connected Fitness community to include more than 120 million registered users," the company said in a statement.
"Under Armour is in a unique position to lead the smart clothing revolution, merging their gear with some of the leading tracking technologies," said Mac Gambill, president of fitness data tracking company Nudge.
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In short, Under Armour's fitness app grab "has the potential to create a new wave of smart clothing that is both functional and attractive to the average consumer," he says.
"The real question that arises is how other major sports apparel brands will view Under Armour's advances in taking over the digital health market. If others see this path as a viable option for growth, this announcement could serve as the catalyst for a frenzy of similar acquisitions of other health apps."
Under Armour clearly is staking out its ground for that fight.
"Under Armour's demonstrated global leadership in health and fitness innovation is greatly enhanced with the addition of Endomondo and MyFitnessPal, as we continue to redefine and elevate the Connected Fitness experience for millions of people around the world," said Kevin Plank, the company's chairman and CEO.
"Similar to MapMyFitness, Endomondo and MyFitnessPal have established track records of unmatched equity, expertise and passion in the fitness and nutrition space, and they are ideal partners to enable Under Armour to provide data-driven, proactive solutions to help athletes of all levels lead healthier and more active lifestyles," Plank said.
Under Armour entered the "quantified self" fight in 2011 when it offered a biometrics tracking shirt at the NFL Combine.
"We quickly understood that the power was in the community and an open platform and that these were far more valuable than the hardware tracking device," Plank said in Feb. 4 comments to investors.
