The deal between Google and Fitbit may be done soon in Europe. An EU antitrust approval may be won by Google which may lead to the acquisition of Fitbit being finalized. The European Commission opened an investigation into the Google-Fitbit deal as more advocacy groups expressed their concerns over the huge takeover. The tech giant is willing to shell out a large sum of $2.1 billion to buy the fitness tracker manufacturer, hoping to beat Samsung and Apple in the wearable game.
The deal will likely make Google more powerful not only in the wearable industry but also in other areas like online advertising. Fitbit data are significant and there have been concerns that Google may take advantage of everything.
The tech company said it will restrict the use of Fitbit data for Google ads. Extra measures will be taken including tighter monitoring. Google said it will continue to support “other wearable manufacturers on Android and to continue to allow Fitbit users to connect to third party services via APIs (application programming interfaces) if they want to”. Access to users’ data will still be available to other third parties.
The European Commission will make a decision on December 23, 2020. An earlier decision may also be provided if already available. The EU will need to get feedback from customers and rivals. It will need to review the concessions provided by Google.
Fitbit has the potential to make it big again in the wearable category. It’s now behind Apple, Xiaomi, Samsung, and Huawei with only a small three percent share of the wearable market. The takeover may put the brand on top again.
The European Commission has been working hard to make sure the deal is fair. It’s been exploring the data Google requires. It has started to ask around about possible issues that may be related to digital healthcare among others. We’ll see how the story ends.