Many startup companies in the world of technology dream to become a part of a huge player like Google through a multi-million-dollar deal. In the case of Fitbit, this dream is about to turn into reality. The US internet giant Google acquired the Fitbit for a staggering amount of $2.1 billion.
Google further announced the eventual arrival of wearable products Made By Google. They also increased their investment to develop their Wear OS operating system.
Now that you know about Google’s plans, you must be wondering why they are investing tons of money and effort to reach the wrists of their customers.
Google is planning to acquire a massive slice of the market of wearable technology. That is why they are willing to pay $40 million for smart-watch technology from Fossil, the renowned fashion brand.
So what are the reasons behind making a move for the Fitbit now? A senior analyst from CCS Insight, Leo Gebbie, says that wearable technology is perhaps a logical extension of its present hardware portfolio. Though the investment, they strategically kicked out all the other players who were planning to buy it.
Healthy expansion
According to Jitesh Ubrani who is the research manager at IDC, there are enough possibilities of growth left in the sector of wearable technology.
He also says that there are plenty of people who don’t know anything about wearable technology. Most of these commoners are first-time buyers too. The smartphone market is already at its saturation point. In that respect, wearable technology is still at its prime.
Jitesh Ubrani further added that Google would rise to meet the challenges of creating an appealing device of excellent design. The smart-watch would be effective regarding tracking health and fitness. It would also be robust and smart with connectivity features. In short, the smart-watch of Google will be a small package that packs a huge punch.
Revamping WearOS
Analysts agree to the fact that Google has to improve its old operating system that drives its wearable gadgets. Jitesh Ubrani points to the fact that Google didn’t focus on its wearable-device sector. It is evident from the lack of updates.
Ubrani thinks that it is time for Google to reinvigorate its WearOS platform if they wish to succeed.
Gebbie believes that it was stupid of Google when they didn’t mention anything about WearOS updates at their developer conference that took place recently. It gave a negative message. People began to think that they lacked the commitment that they should’ve shown towards the OS.
There are other events that showcased the mistakes made by the internet giant. However, Gebbie believes that the acquisition of Fitbit is going to benefit Google in terms of data. After all, Fitbit has 27 million daily users.
Urbani agrees with Gebbie. He suspects that Google didn’t want to acquire 27 million new customers. Instead, the brand had its eyes on the data.
Perfect for the future
It is highly possible that Google will launch its smart-watch in May or June. It will be around the time when Google will arrange the next conference. The brand will bide its time and will launch the smart-watch with the Pixel 5 smartphone and the latest version of Google Home Hub.
Google must come up with several exclusive features that will allow all the devices in its ecosystem to link with each other. The functionalities should include something more than flipping through songs on Spotify, measuring heartbeat rate and displaying notifications.
