Amazon closed Halo Health, which has developed its own healthcare service & hardware, on July 31, dismissed staff & finished selling all devices
On April 27, 2023, Amazon announced that it will close its healthcare service Halo Health on July 31st. As a result, Halo Health-related hardware purchased by users in the past year will be eligible for a full refund.
Amazon discontinues Amazon Halo effective July 31
https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/company-news/amazon-halo-discontinued
Amazon closing Halo health division, lays off staff while offering hardware refunds | TechCrunch
https://techcrunch.com/2023/04/26/amazon-closing-halo-health-division-lays-off-staff-while-offering-hardware-refunds/
Amazon pulls the plug on Halo division, discontinues all devices - The Verge
https://www.theverge.com/2023/4/26/23699459/amazon-layoffs-halo-fitness-tracking-sleep-tracking
'We have made the difficult decision to scale back the Halo program, which will result in the layoff of some employees,' said Melissa Cha, vice president of smart home and healthcare at Amazon. faced significant headwinds in increasingly congested segments, an uncertain economic environment, etc. Our customers love many aspects of Halo, but we prioritize our resources and We need to maximize our profits and the long-term health of our business.'
Products such as Halo View, Halo Band, and Halo Rise are eligible for refunds. Halo View is a healthcare tracker with an organic EL display just announced in October 2021, and is a device that can measure heart rate, step count, sleep score, blood oxygen concentration, workout, etc. Halo View, Halo Band, and Halo Rise are no longer sold on Amazon at the time of writing, but are still available from some third-party sellers.
Amazon new product announcement summary such as Alexa-equipped home watching robot 'Astro' and children's device 'Amazon Glow' - GIGAZINE
Overseas media TechCrunch said that when Google's Stadia was closed, a similar refund was made, saying, ``A full refund is a sign of goodwill for customers, and if related services are closed, the hardware becomes worthless. It's like tacitly acknowledging that it will become.' In addition, Amazon will also stop the registration of Halo's subscription service and will refund the prepaid amount.
With the closure of Halo Health, the staff who worked in the department were also laid off. Amazon has already notified relevant employees in the United States and Canada of the dismissal, and will notify employees in other regions according to local processes. As a result, it may take time to consult with employee organizations and communicate with affected employees. In addition, it is said that dismissed employees will be provided with retirement benefits, medical insurance benefits, external employment support services, etc.
In addition, Amazon dismissed 18,000 employees in January 2023 and 9,000 employees in March. Amazon's hardware division has been hit hard during January's job cuts, with many of the Amazon Echo development team laid off.
Amazon started dismissing more than 18,000 people, the most in history, mainly affecting retail and human resources departments-GIGAZINE
'We continually evaluate the advancement of our products and their potential to deliver customer value, and make regular adjustments based on those evaluations,' Amazon spokesperson Kristy Schmidt told The Verge. We have made the difficult decision to end support for Amazon Halo on July 31, 2023. We are extremely proud of the technology and effort we put into building Halo for our customers. Our priority is to look after and support our customers.'
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in Web Service, Hardware, Posted by logu_ii