Fitness giants face lawsuits over patents

Dish Network Corp. and its Sling TV unit filed lawsuits accusing three of the biggest players in streaming at-home fitness programs of infringing patents for technology that improves the quality of video content over the internet.

The suits, filed Tuesday in federal courts in Texas and Delaware, accuse Peloton Interactive Inc., NordicTrack maker Icon Health & Fitness Inc. and Mirror owner Lululemon Athletica Inc. of using Dish’s patented technology that “allows internet users to stream content from across the world in real time at the highest possible quality.”

The patents cited in the lawsuits relate to ways of improving online video quality, particularly when users do things like fastforward or rewind programs. They also allow for browsing of multiple streams without hiccups and adjust for a user’s bandwidth. Sling said it uses the technology in offering subscriptions to live TV channels over the internet.

Dish cited Peloton’s second corporate headquarters and showroom in Plano for filing the lawsuit in Marshall, a district whose courts are widely considered friendly to patent owners.