Fitbit close to buying Pebble

Going for a song

Fitness wearables outfit Fitbit is close to buying smartwatch maker Pebble and the prices is rather low.

The Information claims the deal would see Fitbit taking Pebble’s intellectual property, such as its operating system and the Pebble brand would be phased out.

Fitbit’s offer is believed to be for a “small amount,” and comes after Pebble has been searching for a buyer for some time. It laid off 25 percent of its staff earlier this year, and CEO Eric Migicovsky said at the time that money was too tight to mention.  This was despite funding rounds in 2015 and 2016 that raised $ 26 million.

Pebble rose to prominence in 2012 for running one of the first hugely successful Kickstarter campaigns for its Pebble smartwatch. Since then, it’s released updated models with heart-tracking ality, moving further into the fitness tracking space occupied by Fitbit and rivals like Jawbone.

Fitbit, is not having much luck itself these days, It was the target of class action lawsuits and seeing its stock price fall after lukewarm reception of its Blaze watch.