China Mobile’s video entertainment unit Migu and New Zealand-based fitness brand Les Mills have agreed a deal to develop personal fitness content for the Chinese market
The companies plan to develop an online Les Mills community in China, jointly create exclusive content and exercise programs, and stream fitness-themed entertainment content.
With a large slice of the Chinese and global population stuck at home, fitness industry brands are trying to expand their digital businesses, offering training and workout content.
Les Mills claims to be the world’s largest ‘collective fitness’ brand. Starting out as a gym chain in New Zealand, the company has successfully expanded into creating and licensing exercise class formats, such as Bodypump, Bodycombat and CXWorx. The company trains and licenses instructors in gyms around the world to deliver the classes, and supplies supporting content and materials. It currently cooperates with more than 20,000 fitness clubs and has more than 130,000 certified instructors.
Migu first arrived on the sports scene when it sublicensed streaming rights to the 2018 Fifa World Cup from Chinese state broadcaster CCTV. It has since expanded its sports and leisure content.