Weilos, which runs an online community for people interested in fitness and weight loss, has been acquired by Weight Watchers, TechCrunch is reporting. Although no numbers have been officially released, TechCrunch’s sources claim the price is in the single-digit millions.
Weilos started as a marketplace for pairing up people who want to lose weight with online fitness coaches who have had their own weight loss successes. Later on, the company changed its strategy to focus on being a social media platform for people to talk about their weight loss and fitness goals, track their food intake and activity, and share selfies of their progress.
Weight Watchers spokesperson confirmed via email that the company has indeed acquired Weilos, sending along the following statement from Weight Watchers CTO Dan Crowe:
Weilos is one of the highest rated apps in the Apple app store with an average rating of five stars and users praising the motivation, encouragement and support they find in the Weilos community. This strategically important acquisition will accelerate the product and technology development of the social networking and community capabilities that Weight Watchers members are looking for.
This isn’t the first digital health acquisition from Weight Watchers. Last year, they acquired Wello, which connects people with personal trainers.