The FTC has launched an investigation into tech giant Amazon’s proposed $1.7 billion purchase of iRobot, the company behind Roomba. The acquisition has raised privacy concerns as it may give the e-commerce giant the ability to map customers’ houses.
The Wall Street Journal reports that federal antitrust enforcers have launched an investigation into Amazon’s proposal to purchase Roomba maker iRobot Corp. according to recent security filings. The Federal Trade Commission formally requested documents from both companies this week that explains the purpose and rationale of the proposed $1.7 billion deal.
The FTC is also investigating Amazon’s $3.9 billion deal to buy 1Life Healthcare Inc. which operates One Medical primary-care clinics in 25 U.S. markets. The filing by iRobot said that both companies would cooperate with the FTC’s investigation and plans to reply to the FTC’s request.
Breitbart News reported earlier this month on a coalition that called on the FTC to stop Amazon’s “surveillance empire.” In their letter, the combined group wrote that:
By 2021, Amazon Ring had crushed competing smart doorbell makers—selling as many units as its four closest competitors combined. Amazon’s success relied on selling low-price Ring doorbells through its almost ubiquitous e-commerce platform, aided by integration with the company’s subscription program, Amazon Prime.
Amazon seeks to follow a similar path in buying iRobot. By purchasing an already popular smart home device, they will be able to extend the device’s prevalence through anti-competitive pricing while using personal consumer data to further entrench their monopoly power in the digital economy. By selling the Roomba brand at or near a loss via the Prime subscription, the company can access more personal consumer data to buttress its anti-competitive advantages online. In short, the deal will further entrench Amazon’s hold on the smart home technology ecosystem, eliminate competition in that sector, and enhance the company’s monopoly power.
FTC investigations usually take approximately a year to complete, but upon closure of the investigation, the commission can sue to block a merger, seek concessions, or decline to take action. The FTC has been focusing on acquisitions by technology giants recently, saying that the deals often hurt competition and give large tech firms too much control over valuable consumer data.
Recently, the FTC sued to block Facebook (now known as Meta) from acquiring Within Unlimited Inc. and its virtual-reality fitness app, Supernatural. Amazon says that it has been “very good stewards of peoples’ data across all of our businesses,” and that it is not acquiring iRobot to gather intelligence from inside customers’ homes.
Privacy experts worried that Amazon’s acquisition of iRobot would give them access to Roomba user data including home layouts, devices in the residence, and other data that could be sold to advertisers.
Read more at the Wall Street Journal here.
Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship. Follow him on Twitter @LucasNolan