Fitbit “to acquire smartwatch maker Pebble for $40 million”

Pebble had reportedly been looking to sell as the company has been experiencing financial troubles over the past year.

Pebble’s claim to fame was its successful multi-million dollar crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter which gave rise to a well-received lineup of smartwatches that established a cult following.

We’ve reached out to both Fitbit and Pebble for additional comment, and will update once we know more.

Fitbit is eyeing a purchase of smartwatch maker Pebble, but it’s not clear how far the deal will go to bolster Fitbit’s murky prospects.

What Would Fitbit Gain From a Pebble Acquisition? And if this report is true, it’s also been said that the acquisition may lead to phasing out of Pebble’s brand entirely.

The deal would also appear to signal the cancellation of the launch of Pebble’s latest Core device that it had planned to release in early 2017 that would offer more of a challenge to competitors like the Apple Watch. Pebble is a smartwatch pioneer, but the privately held company has struggled since big consumer technology companies like Apple and Samsung (OTCMKTS:SSNLF) chose to start selling smartwatches. Pebble’s lower-power smartwatch design could be a good match for fitness tracking. We found it to be a solid fitness tracker, but not much of a smartwatch.

Pebble CEO Eric Migicovsky confirmed earlier that his company had raised $28 million in debt and venture financing. This amount, it says, might only be enough for the company to pay off debts to its suppliers and complete the transaction. On May 12, Fitbit acquired consumer electronics company Coin’s wearable payment assets for undisclosed terms, saying it meant to develop a payment solution to incorporate into future products. This makes sense, as some of Fitbit’s own smartwatches have received cold receptions, and the company’s fourth-quarter guidance last month was just plain very bad. Numerous tech media outlets are suggesting their audiences get a Pebble as fast as they can, and expect the best of these two names joining forces and creating a smartwatch capable of competing with the reigning top slot, the Apple Watch.