Peloton, which has had something of a corporate meltdown in the two years since it rode high during the lockdown phase of the pandemic, announced earlier this year that it is outsourcing manufacturing, raising prices, and cutting costs.

Now, Peloton has announced another change: it will sell its products through Amazon.

“Prior to today, Peloton's new products and accessories were sold, exclusively, through the brand's e-commerce site, inside sales channels and global showrooms,” Peloton said in its press release. “This collaboration allows Peloton to expand its distribution and more immediately engage millions of Peloton Members and prospective Members in a new channel for the brand, making products and accessories more readily accessible in Amazon stores. Customers can search for the products in Amazon stores to see if they are available for purchase and delivery in their area.”

Amazon will also offer in-home delivery of the Peloton products.

"Expanding our distribution channels through Amazon is a natural extension of our business and an organic way to increase access to our brand," Peloton Chief Commercial Officer Kevin Cornils said in the announcement. "We want to meet consumers where they are, and they are shopping on Amazon. Providing additional opportunities to expose people to Peloton is a clear next step, as we continue to generate excitement for our unparalleled connected fitness experience.”

The change follows an amusing controversy from September of 2020 in which a company called Echelon introduced what it called the Prime Bike, which it claimed was “developed in collaboration with Amazon” and which much of the tech press described as an Amazon effort to compete with the then-booming Peloton Bike.

However, Amazon soon declared that it had nothing to do with the product.

"This bike is not an Amazon product or related to Amazon Prime," an Amazon

spokesperson said in a statement issued to the media. "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.” Echelon went on to describe the discrepancy as a misunderstanding.

The Echelon Smart Connect Indoor Cycling Bike is still being sold on Amazon, but is not called the “Prime Bike.”

"We are thrilled to have Peloton products available for our customers in Amazon stores," Jim Adkins, Vice President of Recreational and Vocational categories at Amazon, said in the release.

 "Peloton is all about bringing their community and energizing fitness routines into the home. With Amazon's convenient shopping experience, we hope to further that mission by providing customers with high quality, innovative products to take their health and fitness to the next level," Adkins continued.

 Stephen Silver, a technology writer for The National Interest, is a journalist, essayist and film critic, who is also a contributor to The Philadelphia Inquirer, Philly Voice, Philadelphia Weekly, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Living Life Fearless, Backstage magazine, Broad Street Review and Splice Today. The co-founder of the Philadelphia Film Critics Circle, Stephen lives in suburban Philadelphia with his wife and two sons. Follow him on Twitter at @StephenSilver.

Image: Reuters.