Amazon (AMZN -1.64%) is distancing itself from the Prime Bike unveiled yesterday by connected fitness equipment maker Echelon, saying it had nothing to do with its manufacture. It also halted the sale of the connected stationary bike until it can clarify the situation with the company.
In a statement to Bloomberg, Amazon said, "This bike is not an Amazon product or related to Amazon Prime. Echelon does not have a formal partnership with Amazon. We are working with Echelon to clarify this in its communications, stop the sale of the product, and change the product branding."
Image source: Echelon.
Backpedaling fast
In a now-deleted press release, Echelon said the Prime Bike was Amazon's "first-ever connected fitness product" and "was developed in collaboration" with the e-commerce giant. It also intimated Amazon had sought out the company to create the $500 bike.
Shares of Peloton Interactive (PTON -2.24%) tumbled 7% on the news as the Prime Bike could have had the potential to undercut sales of its own high-priced workout bikes.
Prime is Amazon's popular membership loyalty program that offers free one- and two-day shipping, and products associated with it often get a boost. Some analysts discounted the threat it posed to Peloton, though, and the stock closed the day down less than 1%.
Echelon has a similar connected fitness bike at Walmart that retails for the same price. It appeared the only real difference was the branding.
Considering the definitive nature of the announcement, it is an odd turn that Amazon is now disavowing any association with the bike.
