Smartwatch pioneer Pebble Technology Corp on Wednesday announced it was shutting down, with tech wearables giant Fitbit Inc acquiring some of its assets, including key personnel.
“Due to various factors, Pebble is no longer able to operate as an independent entity. We have made the tough decision to shut down the company and no longer manufacture Pebble devices,” Pebble founder Eric Migicovsky said in a statement.
Pebble, one of the early makers of connected watches which has sold about 2 million devices since launching in 2012, said that “many members of Team Pebble will be joining the Fitbit family to continue their work on wearable software platforms.”
A separate statement from Fitbit said it had acquired “specific assets of Pebble, including key personnel and intellectual property related to software and firmware development,” but not the company’s hardware product.
Terms of the deal were not announced.
“With basic wearables getting smarter and smartwatches adding health and fitness capabilities, we see an opportunity to build on our strengths and extend our leadership position in the wearables category,” Fitbit chief executive James Park said. “With this acquisition, we’re well positioned to accelerate the expansion of our platform and ecosystem to make Fitbit a vital part of daily life for a wider set of consumers, as well as build the tools healthcare providers, insurers and employers need to more meaningfully integrate wearable technology into preventative and chronic care.”
Pebble was among the early developers of smartwatches, raising money on the Kickstarter crowdfunding platform. Its drive last year raised a record US$20.3 million.
The deal comes with Fitbit leading the pack of connected wearables makers, but with its stock slumping.
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