Hyperice
The massage gun maker is showing no mercy.
The news: Protecting its IP, Hyperice filed 16 additional patent infringement lawsuits this week against Sharper Image, HoMedics, Ekrin Athletics, CVS, Costco, Walgreens, Kohl’s, and others.
Doubling down on its filing against Therabody earlier this month, Hyperice says it will continue aggressively defending its recently awarded patent — which covers tech dating back to 2013.
Patent wars. As health and fitness innovations gain steam, litigious battles are to be expected.
- Fighting to own connected strength, Tonal sued Chinese rival Speediance in November.
- Last fall, Hydrow forced iFIT to alter the design of its NordicTrack rowers.
- Peloton went head to head with Echelon, Flywheel Sports, and more.
- On the smart ring front, Oura is suing Indian startup Ultrahuman.
Even Apple isn’t immune; this month, it was forced to redesign its smartwatch without the blood oxygen sensor after losing an appeal against medical monitoring company Masimo.
Punchline: In the best of times, there’s enough growth to go around. When sales slow, brands are forced to defend their turf in court. As the lawsuits stack up, it’s still unclear who owns percussion tech, connected strength, smart rings, and more.
