Amazon cancels acquisition of iRobot, iRobot lays off 31% of employees & resigns as CEO
Amazon and iRobot have agreed to halt the acquisition plan of iRobot, the maker of the Roomba robot vacuum cleaner, after failing to obtain approval from regulatory authorities. announced. Additionally, it was announced that iRobot's founder, Chairman of the Board, and CEO Colin Angle would resign and approximately 350 employees would be laid off.
Amazon-and-iRobot-Agree-to-Terminate-Pending-Acquisition
iRobot Announces Operational Restructuring Plan to Position Company for the Future | iRobot Corporation
https://investor.irobot.com/news-releases/news-release-details/irobot-announces-operational-restructuring-plan-position-company
Amazon terminates iRobot deal, Roomba maker to lay off 31% of staff
https://www.cnbc.com/2024/01/29/amazon-terminates-irobot-deal-vacuum-maker-to-lay-off-31percent-of-staff.html
Amazon announced in August 2022 that it will acquire iRobot for approximately $ 1.7 billion (approximately 250 billion yen).
Amazon to acquire iRobot, developer of robot vacuum cleaner 'Roomba', for approximately 230 billion yen - GIGAZINE
However, the EU's European Commission is expected to take action against Amazon's plan to acquire iRobot, stating that ``Amazon may reduce the visibility of competing products in search results or delist them.'' was reported. Following the news and preliminary reports that the EU would block Amazon's acquisition of iRobot, iRobot's stock price plummeted, and the company's market capitalization fell to less than $400 million (approximately 59 billion yen), economic media CNBC reported. Masu.
Report that the EU will block Amazon's plan to acquire iRobot, the maker of the Roomba robot vacuum cleaner, for 250 billion yen - GIGAZINE
Margrethe Vestager, Executive Vice-President of the European Commission, said: 'Our thorough investigation shows that Amazon's acquisition of iRobot has the potential to exclude iRobot competitors from Amazon. 'Amazon's market dominance may have limited competition in the robot vacuum cleaner market, leading to higher prices, lower quality, and less innovation for consumers.'
'We are disappointed that Amazon's acquisition of iRobot could not proceed,' said David Zapolsky, Amazon's senior vice president and general counsel. 'It discourages entrepreneurs who consider themselves to be part of the industry, and harms both consumers and competition, which is exactly what regulators are trying to protect.'
'While we are disappointed to end our contract with Amazon, iRobot remains focused on continuing to build thoughtful robots and intelligent home innovations that make lives better and are loved by customers around the world,' said Angle, founder of iRobot. We will leave this behind and work towards the future.'
When the merger plan between Amazon and iRobot ends, Amazon will pay the previously agreed upon fee of $94 million (approximately 13.85 billion yen). Also, immediately after Amazon and iRobot announced the end of their acquisition plan, iRobot's stock price fell 10%.
Then, iRobot announced the implementation of a business restructuring plan following the end of Amazon's acquisition plan. Mr. Angle stepped down as Chairman of the Board and CEO, and Glenn Weinstein, Executive Vice President and Chief Legal Officer, was appointed Interim CEO, and Andrew Miller, Lead Independent Director, was appointed Chairman of the Board.
In addition, iRobot has reduced R&D costs by approximately 30% and temporarily suspended the development of products and services other than floor care, such as air purifiers, robot lawn mowers, and education-related items, among the product roadmaps currently in progress at the time of writing. In addition, the company announced that it will lay off approximately 350 people, or 31% of its total workforce, as of March 30, 2024.
'iRobot continues to build cutting-edge robotic floor care solutions that help consumers make their homes easier to care for and healthier places to live,' said Andrew Miller, Chairman of the Board. But to make this happen, we need to look to our future as an independent company and quickly put our business model and cost structure in place.Decisions that affect our people are difficult. , we must move forward by building more sustainable business models and refocusing on profitability. The measures we are announcing today will chart a new strategic path for sustainable value creation. I am confident that we can do it.”
Related Posts:
in Note, Posted by log1i_yk