The deal’s latest hurdle is the European Commission, which has set a February 14 deadline to reach a final decision.
According to a new report, the EU regulatory body is set to vote against acquisition, citing the perceived anti-competitive nature of deal.
In July, Amazon announced that it was lowering its asking price from $61 to $51.75 per share.
The day the initial deal was announced, iRobot cut its headcount by 10% — around 140 people – as part of a restructure.
As of this writing, share prices have dipped below $20 – one-third of where things where when the deal was announced.
I don’t know that anyone expected such a massive deal to simply skate past regulators — particularly with all of the heat Amazon has received for privacy concerns and noncompetitive practices over the last decade.
At the same time, I don’t think too many of us assumed that we would be barreling into 2024 with this big, open question mark.
The deal has already been greenlit by a number of governmental bodies, but the process has felt drawn out at every step.
If you’re a regular Actuator reader, you likely already know my feelings about outside scrutiny of business practices (I’m generally pro), but I expected something definitive by now.
Amazon will be just fine, of course, but I can’t imagine this waiting game has been easy on iRobot, which underwent two rounds of layoffs in mid-2022 and early 2023.
Reports suggest that the CMA is concerned about how Amazon could use iRobot’s robotics technology to its advantage, particularly in relation to prices and market share. The authority has given…
