Nike Or Reducing Wearable Input, Extending Service Is Insufficient

Nike, a sports brand giant with a long history in big data and wearables, is cooling down this emerging field. According to foreign media reports, Nike headquarters has recently proved that it has made a small reduction in the number of employees in its wearable device department, Fuel Band.

The report also said that due to the high cost of hardware business and the lack of sufficient profits for the company, Nike has recently been engaged in a heated debate on the related decisions of the Fuel Band.

Nike China's reply to reporters yesterday did not involve layoffs, but said: "Nike+Fuel Band SE is still an important part of our business. We will continue to develop the Nike+Fuel Band App, release new METALUXE colors, and continue to sell and support the Nike+Fuel Band SE in the foreseeable future. "

Market analysts believe that the profit prospects of traditional enterprises such as Nike in the wearable field are not clear, and their attempts at emerging technologies are more conducive to boosting the main business.

　 "Water test" wearable

In fact, Nike is the first sporting goods enterprise to set foot in wearables, and it mainly cooperates with Apple to digitize sports.

At first, Nike just wanted to combine sports with the Internet and named its digital platform Nike+. Since the launch of Nike+Running in 2006, it has launched a number of iOS platform applications, including Nike+Training Club, Nike+Fuel Band, Nike+Move, Nike+iPod, Nike+Sportband, etc.

Take the Nike+iPod as an example. Its components are mainly to add sensors in the shoes and install receivers on the iPod, so that users can see a series of running data such as their pace and distance in real time.

In 2011, Nike also cooperated with Tom Tom to launch the Nike+Sport Watch GPS. After running, athletes can upload running data to Nikeplus's website via USB.

In 2012, Nike's first generation of Nike+Fuel Band came out, with three different choices of black, gray and white, and the supporting iOS platform application was included for free. In 2013, the second generation of Nike+Fuel Band came out, and added the function of tracking human physiological indicators.

Last year, Huang Xiangyan, Nike's PR Director for Greater China, said in an exclusive interview with reporters on such topics that the core value of Nike+lies in the huge online community it has built, and said: "There is no commercial consideration, just want to give full play to the community function and increase sports fun."

　　 Apparel enterprise limitations appear

Nike may not have thought so far at first. However, with the help of the wearable trend, Nike's demonstration effect has triggered the crazy pursuit of other clothing and sporting goods enterprises.

For example, Adidas has also launched the smart watch product mi Coach, which can provide feedback and heart rate guidance exercises through the screen, vibration and Bluetooth headset on the watch.

These are based on the combination of exercise and health, and extend to entrepreneurial projects in intelligent hardware fields such as weight meter, sphygmomanometer, chair, etc.

Domestic garment enterprises are also carrying out Wearability Try. Pathfinder (300005. SZ) has launched a wearable outdoor intelligent Bluetooth bracelet and launched the first outdoor sports integration service APP in China. At present, this bracelet of Toread is still in the stage of trial sale and has not been promoted on a large scale.

　　 Aokang International Also, high-tech products such as positioning shoes and step counting shoes are being developed and will be launched to the market in due course. The positioning shoes they said are the combination of GPS technology and shoes, pointing out the direction, and the foot counting shoes can transmit real-time motion data.

The focus of wearable technology is how to use the acquired digital to extend services. However, this seems to be a weakness for traditional enterprises.

"Nike's own investment in wearable devices is not very large, but it was done earlier." Lu Zhenwang, an Internet expert, told reporters that as a sporting goods company, Nike's core competitiveness is still shoes. The number of users in wearable devices is small, and it is still a loss making business. But this is conducive to the sales of their own sports shoes and help their main business. In general, Lu Zhenwang is not optimistic about Nike's competitiveness in the wearable field.