Under Armour acquires Danish fitness tracking app Endomondo


    In acquisition news, Denmark’s Endomondo has been acquired by fitness giant Under Armor in an $85 million deal. The product will continue to be developed under the Endomondo brand but with the acquisition, Under Armour has bought at least 20 million users as well as a fitness tracking platform that plays well with external devices like Android Smartwear and Pebble watches.

    The acquisition plays into Under Armor’s growing digital strategy as at the same Q4 earnings announcement the company announced it has acquired nutrition tracking app MyFitnessPal for $475 million. There’s a saying that every company is a tech company these days, but these two acquisitions should position Under Armor better agains competitors like Nike, who have their own brand of fitness tracking apps and wearables.

    Lately Endomondo has been monetizing their userbase though brand-sponsored challenges, such as Samsung motivating you to stay fit in the new year. Once the two companies get settled in, it will be interesting to see if the product will still be monetized through brand challenges, or if the “ripped dudes and shiny metal” Under Armour branding will be the only one shining though.

    “…We’re only just getting started,” writes Endomondo CEO Mette Lykke on the company’s blog. “The Endomondo brand and product will live on, even stronger and more energized than ever before. You can still use Endomondo just as you have in the past and we will continue focusing on creating more motivating tools to make fitness fun. Any feedback on product improvements is welcome as always!”