NordicTrack Sues Peloton

A rival company is arguing that some of the features on Peloton's latest stationary bike seem familiar. Icon Health and Fitness, whose brands include NordicTrack, filed a patent infringement lawsuit on Thursday, CNN reports. The legal battle is circular: Peloton had sued Icon in May and its lawyer said this filing is retaliatory, "intended to deflect attention away from ICON's blatant infringement." Icon did not comment on its suit. In February, per Business Insider, Peloton settled another suit, a $300 million filing by the National Music Publishers' Association. The suit accused the company of using thousands of songs without a license.

Icon's suit says the company developed and employed a swiveling touchscreen and an auto resistance feature "well before Peloton." Both are on Peloton's $2,500 Bike+ model. Icon says it has a patent on the resistance feature and has one pending on the screen, and both are on current Icon products. "Some companies, like Peloton, have built (at least in part) entire businesses on the back of Icon's patented technology," Icon said in its suit. Peloton's earlier suit accused Icon of false advertising and of copying its interactive fitness program. During the pandemic, Peloton sales have soared 66% in the third quarter, and the company now is valued at more than $37 billion. (More Peloton stories.)