Fitbit is reportedly set to acquire rival and smartwatch pioneer Pebble, with a view to taking its technologies and retiring the brand.
The Information reports that the maker of fitness-trackers is interested in using the operating system built by Pebble to power its products, but will be phasing the watches out after the aquisition. Engadget cites sources that indicate Pebble will be bought for a mere $US40 million, despite the company having turned down much bigger aquisition offers in the past.
While companies including Apple, Samsung and Huawei continue to make big, complicated computers that strap to our wrists, Fitbit and Pebble have for years produced simple wearables worn by millions. However, each company struggled as the heavy hitters entered the field.
Pebble was an early success on crowdfunding site Kickstarter, raising $US10 million for its original smartwatch in 2012 despite only setting a $US100,000 funding goal. Its follow-up Steel and colour-screen Time versions were also popular, but with little reason for users to upgrade and poor-performing attempts to make a more premium product (namely the circular Pebble Time Round), the company began to rack up debt.
Meanwhile Fitbit has seen wide success with its simple bands that count steps and monitor activity, but has struggled to make a high-quality fitness tracking smartwatch that can last for days without a charge and handle many of the smartphone-powered functions the Apple Watch can perform.
Handily this exactly describes Pebble's latest — and perhaps final — devices, the Pebble 2 and Pebble Time 2, which were recently funded at 12 times their Kickstarter goal of $US1 million.
Included in the latest Kickstarter campaign was also the screenless, 3G-enabled Pebble Core, designed to track fitness activities, stream music and perform basic connected functions without needing to be near a smartphone. The device is expected to ship to backers in January.
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