If Fitbit wanted to keep the Apple Store as a distribution channel, maybe it shouldn’t have dissed HealthKit quite so hard. ReCode is reporting that the public anti-HealthKit stance will cost Fitbit its place in Apple Stores.
We don’t know how many units Fitbit sells through Apple, but we doubt it’s a big number; BestBuy is probably far more important from a revenue standpoint. But the Apple Store is a premium outlet with a well-edited selection of products which today consists of the Fitbit Flex, the Jawbone Up24, Nike’s Fuelband SE, Withings Pulse O2, and a few items from Mio. (Wait a minute: didn’t Misfit used to sell through Apple, too?) There’s a certain sheen that the Apple Store provides that has a real value.
This rumor may be no more than that: a well-placed shot across Fitbit’s bow to bring it into line. But someone at Apple is not pleased with Fitbit, which may be a problem as Fitbit moves toward its only product launch of the year — and that after a blown launch last year, too.