Fitbit has been on a rollercoaster of success and uncertainty since releasing their first step tracker all the way back in 2007, and now the fitness tech icon may be looking for a potential buyer. This comes after Fitbit cut its 2019 revenue forecast after sales of its newest wearables (namely the Versa Lite) were below expectations.
Fitbit has allegedly hired Qatalyst Partners, a technology-oriented boutique investment bank, to assist in putting the company up for sale. There is currently no word on a potential buyer, though Fitbit’s portfolio of fitness hardware and software – which includes assets from Pebble, Twine Health, Vector Watch, and Coin – would easily bolster a number of Alphabet’s subsidiaries.
For starters, Wear OS could greatly benefit from Fitbit’s chops in the health arena: improved heart rate tracking, insightful sleep stats, and extended battery life are just some of the areas that a Fitbit acquisition could improve.
Verily Life Sciences, Alphabet’s health-oriented arm, could also make significant use of the data and trends gleaned from Fitbit’s wide user base. For instance, leveraging Fitbit’s ambitions to identify sleep apnea via wrist-worn SpO2 sensors or understanding how users’ overall health impacts their chances of suffering from a number of major illnesses and conditions, like diabetes, hypertension, heart attack, or stroke.
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Investors were pleased by the news of a potential sale: Fitbit’s stock price soared 11.7% on Friday before closing.
At the moment, there has been no official confirmation that Fitbit will move forward with offloading the company. We’ll share more details as soon as we learn them.
Date: September 30, 2019
Source: Android Police
