Amazon Drops Roomba Acquisition Under EU Pressure

January 29, 2024 Business, European Union

Amazon and Roomba maker iRobot on Monday said that they’ll terminate their $1.4 billion merger agreement, due to opposition from European antitrust regulators. This is the first time Amazon has ever been stopped from buying another company.

The deal originally was announced in mid-2022 with a $1.7 billion price-tag, with Amazon hoping to expand a smart home device portfolio that already included Ring and Alexa. EU antitrust regulators expressed concern that Amazon would favor iRobot products over rivals on its marketplace.

Read the full article. When the deal was first announced, Bloomberg reported that the real value to Amazon would be Roomba’s ability to “map” homes and provide a wealth of information that could be used to sell furniture and appliances.

Amazon has canceled its $1.4 billion acquisition of Roomba maker iRobot due to opposition from European antitrust regulators — marking the first time it has ever been stopped from buying another company.
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— Axios (@axios) January 29, 2024