• by Chuck Martin , Staff Writer, August 1, 2016

The wearables market is growing but it’s also broadening.

With nearly 20% of U.S. consumers owning a fitness tracker, there’s a major move to branch into a new area.

There’s fitness and then there’s health, and that’s where a division of Philips sees an opportunity.

A new line of connected and wearable health devices is being launched worldwide today by Philips Personal Health Solutions.

The devices include a health watch, blood pressure monitor and body analysis scale, all interconnected via Bluetooth, which feed a sleek smartphone dashboard.

Not all consumers are being targeted by Philips, which is known for a wide range of hospital technologies, such as MRI and X-ray systems.

“Philips has 100 years of healthcare experience,” Eline de Graaf, director, North America, Philips Personal Health Solutions, told me.

“There ae 60 million to 70 million people with health risk factors,” said de Graff. “We’re focused on them.”

It will be interesting to monitor the success of the health tracker approach over time, since the majority (61%) of those who don’t own a fitness tracker have no intent to buy one in the next year, compared to 71% last year, according to a recent U.S. study by CivicScience.

The health wearables results also may provide some insights into perceived value, since the Philips products are squarely targeted at those who may gravitate to connected devices that can help them keep on an even health keel.

The health watch, for example, provides accurate and clinically validated measurements focused on health metrics more than those associated with fitness.

The watch will be marketed at a retail price of $250. For context, the Fitbit Surge Fitness Super Watch also retails for $250 and the Fitbit Charge HR, which also monitors heart rates, retails for $150.

The creative for the marketing campaign for the devices is being handled by Ogilvy and other aspects by Havas, according to de Graaf. She said people with risk factors would be targeted with a testimonial campaign.

The battle for wrist real estate is on.

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The world of wearables will be discussed in detail at the coming MediaPost IoT Marketing Forum Aug. 3 in New York. Check out the agenda here.