Fitbit S'pore winds up after 11 years

The Singapore unit of Fitbit was placed under voluntary liquidation, ending its 11-year business presence locally.

The fitness tracking technology company first registered its Singapore unit in February 2015 and was acquired by Google in January 2021, reported The Straits Times (ST).

On Mar. 13, Fitbit appeared in a notice published in the Government Gazette confirming that it had appointed liquidators to wind up its Singapore arm.

Checks on the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA) BizFile website by Mothership showed that Fitbit was in the midst of voluntarily winding up.

This does not affect device usage, and users can continue to use their Fitbits as per normal.

Google acquisition

Google's parent company, Alphabet, announced its US$2.1 billion (S$2.7 billion) Fitbit acquisition deal in November 2019.

According to ST, when the acquisition was underway, Google said the move would propel it into the wearable technology market and enable more "Made by Google" devices.

Wearable tech includes products such as smartwatches, earwear and wristbands.

The growing wearables market is largely dominated by players such as Apple, Xiaomi, Huawei and Samsung, according to the International Data Corporation (IDC).

Fitbit device support still available

Google has accelerated Fitbit's integration into its ecosystem and its Pixel Watch lineup.

In response to queries from ST, a Google spokesperson said on Mar. 19 that Fitbit devices will continue to be available through the Google Store and selected retail partners in Singapore.

The spokesperson said existing users can obtain support from Google's support channels or through retailers where the device was purchased.

Fitbit was founded in 2007 in San Francisco by James Park and Eric Friedman to transform health activity tracking through wireless technology and sensors.

In Singapore, Fitbit's products gained attention for their compatibility with the National Steps Challenge, which was launched in November 2015.

This programme tracked participants' daily steps using fitness trackers on the Healthy 365 app and rewarded those who remained active.

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