2015-2022; Streaming and expansion
The company announced that it was developing an OTT streaming platform in 2015 that would function similar to Netflix containing all of its exercise workouts previously available on DVD. The platform gained popularity early in the COVID-19 pandemic with more than half a million new subscribers at that time.[6][7]
Between June and November 2017, advertising watchdog organization Truth in Advertising found that Beachbody distributors were making false and unsubstantiated income claims to promote the company's business opportunity.[8]
In 2017, Beachbody agreed to pay $3.6 million to settle a lawsuit from the city of Santa Monica over automatic credit card renewals. It was alleged that Beachbody was charging its customers' credit cards on an automatic, recurring basis without the required written consent of those customers.[9]
In 2018, Congdon co-founded a personalized nutrition programming and tracking app with "FaceTime for fitness" live group classes called Openfit.[10] The company acquired LeBron James and Arnold Schwarzenegger's Ladder, which develops nutritional products to help athletes with severe cramping after James had issues in the 2014 NBA Finals. The terms of the deal were not disclosed, James and Schwarzenegger remained minority stakeholders.[11]
Due to lockdowns associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, Beachbody On Demand experienced growth of more than 300 percent in new subscribers, passing 2 million overall by April 2020.[12]
A three-way merger between Forest Road Acquisition Corp, Myx Fitness Holdings and Beachbody was entered into in February 2021, which valued the new business combination at $2.9 billion. It was known as The Beachbody Company.[13] [14]
