If Pebble Technology Corporation were to be brutally honest right now, a gimme-a-break sigh would've easily come out of its mouth. March of this year saw reports of the company in financial turmoil; in fact, it had to let go 25 percent of its workforce. News of the Fitbit-Pebble deal broke out, and now Pebble users are apparently against the takeover. To be honest, they should've seen this coming.
Why The Fitbit-Pebble Deal Makes Sense
Things have been pretty tough for the wearables market these days, starting off with Google, who has delayed the release of its newest Android Wear software until 2017. Moreover, Motorola, Huawei and LG - leaders of wearable hardware, all halted their launching, according to The Verge. Fitbit itself, a boss in wearables in its own right, experienced an unexpected stock fall. All of these, and news of the Fitbit-Pebble deal emerges.
The Fitbit-Pebble deal is a win-win case for both companies, given Pebble needs to stay relevant amid the decreasing demand for smartwatches. Fitbit itself acknowledged this fact, mentioning that sales have been frustrating, during its third-quarter earnings call.
If the Fitbit-Pebble deal pushes through, this means Fitbit gets to have a smartwatch software, additional hardware and the honor of owning a homegrown smartwatch platform. For Fitbit, purchasing Pebble also means ridding off a promising competitor. It's obnoxious to imagine the possibilities of Fitbit acquiring Apple - which will never happen - so buying Pebble is a strategy that's essentially easy to surmise.
Fitbit-Pebble Deal: Pebble Didn't Mean To Sell Out
The idea of Pebble selling out is relatively easy to conclude, but really, it's not like the company meant to. Rather, it had to. "What's a shame for wearable tech is that Pebble built some unique products and a loyal community but that still didn't save it from money problems," said Wareable's Sophie Charara, via Forbes.
Let's assume Pebble isn't exactly onboard the Fitbit-Pebble deal, but what would prove a better choice? As of the moment, the deal is the smartest path to undertake.