"The fitness brands have been aspiring to have a relationship with the consumers early and establish an ongoing relationship with consumers," he said.
That strategy can build more loyalty with customers, and buying an established app offers clothing and footwear companies a quicker way onto the market than building from scratch.
Runners will be more loyal to the brand if it also has all your stats. Imagine the hassle to switch the data from one app to the next.
"People want to be connected, track their stats, update their records," said Roger Entner, a technology analyst at Recon Analytics.
Roger Kay, an analyst at Endpoint Technologies Associates, said the shopping spree for fitness likely isn't over.
There are still plenty of apps out there without a brand allegiance, including Fitness Buddy, Lose It!, Couch to 5K, LogYourRun, and Map My Tracks. "There will be a lot of consolidation," Kay said.