Activity tracking platform and community Strava is shutting down Fatmap, the Europe-based 3D mapping platform it acquired last January.
In an email sent to users this week along with an online support page, Fatmap said its website and app will be shut down on October 1, 2024, and that in the meantime, users will have the option to transfer their Fatmap routes to Strava.
The company says it's “bringing Fatmap's 3D mapping and other features to Strava,” but digging into the details makes it clear that a number of features will be omitted in the move.
“Google Maps for the outdoors”
Fatmap is essentially like Google Maps for the outdoors: a high-resolution 3D mapping platform with detailed routes for skiers, hikers, bikers and everyone else. The company was founded in the UK in 2013, but its core team is spread across Europe, including Germany and Lithuania.
Strava's decision to drop Fatmap isn't a surprise: At the time of the deal, Strava said the two products would initially remain separate but would integrate more tightly and then decide whether to keep Fatmap as a standalone product.
Strava has already adopted some of Fatmap's features, including a premium feature called Flyover that provides an aerial 3D video summary of your route.
Flyover feature in action. Image courtesy of Strava. Image courtesy of Strava.
But maintaining two separate products takes more resources than maintaining one, and Strava, which brought in a new CEO in January, is focused on increasing adoption of its core product and addressing key concerns raised by the community, including cheating on leaderboards and the lack of a dark mode.
Strava is making a point of porting many of Fatmap's features to its own app as part of its premium subscription, but with features like this, the devil is in the details.
Strava says it will incorporate Fatmap's 3D satellite maps in addition to the regular 3D maps and 3D imagery that have already been migrated over, but while users will be able to migrate their routes over to Strava, this will only include elements such as the route title, description and the “lines” that mark the route.
Associated data such as assigned gradients cannot be transferred, making it difficult to assess the slope of hills, and although Fatmap users can download this data, they cannot transfer photos.
Other Fatmap features such as adventures, guidebooks and waypoints cannot be transferred to Strava, so users are given the option to download this data using Fatmap's data export tool instead.
Data export tool from Fatmap. Image courtesy of Fatmap. Image courtesy of Fatmap.
Omissions like these make Fatmap useless for people who use it to navigate remote areas or who are trying to decide whether to tackle a particular ski area.
Fatmap says that if users don't take any action on their accounts by October 1, it will delete users' data after that date. Users can take action themselves now and manually delete their data.
Here's Fatmap's email notification in full:
hey there,
Thank you for being an engaged member of the FATMAP community. Since we started FATMAP 10 years ago, your outdoor adventures and explorations have helped make FATMAP the most powerful 3D map in the world.
FATMAP and Strava partnered in January 2023 to make outdoor experiences more accessible. Over the coming months, we will bring FATMAP's 3D mapping and other features to Strava, creating the world's best platform for planning, navigating and sharing outdoor adventures with the world's largest community of active people.
As we move forward with this joint mission, the FATMAP app and website will be retired on October 1, 2024. Until then, you will have access to all of the FATMAP features you currently use. After October 1, the FATMAP app and website will no longer be available.
If you'd like to move your FATMAP routes to Strava or receive copies of your FATMAP adventures, routes, waypoints, photos, and guidebooks, please follow the steps outlined here before October 1st. After that date, your data will be permanently deleted.
Joining Strava is free, or you can download the app from the App Store or Google Play. If you transfer your FATMAP routes to Strava, they will be available as saved routes in your mobile app profile and on your Strava website dashboard. By moving your FATMAP routes to Strava, you consent to your data being transferred from FATMAP to Strava, headquartered in the United States. For more information about your rights regarding FATMAP's personal data, please click here.
Most mapping features on Strava, including route creation, route discovery, offline downloads, Flyover and personal heatmaps, require a Strava subscription. If you don't currently have a Strava subscription, you can sign up for a free 60-day trial by December 31, 2024. You can cancel your subscription at any time during your trial and continue to use Strava for free after your trial ends.
Thank you again for the role you've played in the FATMAP community, and we look forward to seeing more of your adventures on Strava.
see you.
Team FATMAP
Fatmap email to users
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