Strava Sues Garmin for Patent Infringement
▼ Summary
– Strava is suing Garmin for patent infringement related to segments and heatmaps, seeking a permanent injunction to block sales of devices with these features.
– The lawsuit targets Garmin’s Connect platform and devices like Edge bike computers and Forerunner, Fenix, and Epix watches.
– Strava alleges Garmin violated a 2015 Master Cooperation Agreement by expanding Garmin-branded segments beyond the permitted Strava-built experience.
– Strava claims Garmin used its patented segment technology to build a competing system and infringed on additional patents for heatmaps and route suggestions.
– Garmin introduced heatmaps in 2013 before Strava’s patent filings, and Strava states it sued after Garmin rejected informal attempts to resolve the infringement.
In a significant legal development within the fitness technology sector, Strava has initiated a patent infringement lawsuit against its longtime collaborator Garmin, aiming to secure a permanent injunction that would prevent the sale of numerous Garmin products. The complaint, lodged in the US District Court of Colorado, asserts that Garmin has violated a mutual agreement by incorporating Strava’s patented segment and heatmap functionalities into its own ecosystem without proper authorization. These features, which allow athletes to compare performance times on specific route sections and visualize popular activity areas, are central to the dispute.
Strava is not only pursuing monetary compensation but is also demanding a court order to block Garmin from marketing or distributing any devices or services that include these contested capabilities. This legal action targets Garmin’s Connect fitness platform and a broad range of its hardware, such as Edge cycling computers and Forerunner, Fenix, and Epix smartwatches. The company contends that financial remedies alone would be insufficient to address the infringement.
The lawsuit comes as a surprise to many industry observers, given the deep integration and longstanding partnership between the two brands. Strava’s own trend reports have previously highlighted Garmin devices, like the Forerunner 235, as being highly popular among its global user base. This legal clash underscores the complex relationship between cooperation and competition in the tech world.
At the heart of the dispute is Strava’s segment technology, for which a patent was filed in 2011 and granted in 2014. Garmin introduced its own segment system with the Edge 1000 cycle computer in 2014, and the following year, the companies entered into a Master Cooperation Agreement to integrate Strava Live Segments into Garmin devices. According to the lawsuit, Garmin overstepped the bounds of this agreement by expanding its branded segment features beyond the scope permitted by Strava, effectively creating a rival system.
Additionally, Strava alleges that Garmin’s heat mapping and route recommendation tools infringe on two other patents, one filed in 2014 covering activity heatmaps, and another from 2016 related to popularity-based routing. It is worth noting, however, that Garmin’s own heatmap feature debuted in 2013, before Strava’s relevant patent applications.
A Strava spokesperson explained that Garmin was granted limited rights to implement Strava Segments but used that access to replicate the features as their own. He stated that despite repeated attempts to resolve the issue outside of court, Garmin was unresponsive, leaving litigation as the only recourse. The spokesperson emphasized that Strava does not plan to interrupt data synchronization for shared users and expressed hope that Garmin would show similar consideration. Garmin has not yet issued a public response to the allegations.
(Source: The Verge)
