Google enters wearables space; acquires Fitbit for $2.1-bn in all-cash deal

Google could also combine the company with the smartwatch technology it bought from Fossil Group earlier this year to help it design new products

Alphabet Inc’s Google has agreed to buy smartwatch maker Fitbit Inc for $2.1 billion in an all-cash deal, a move that could shore up the internet giant’s hardware business while also potentially increasing antitrust scrutiny. 

Google will pay $7.35 a share for the San Francisco-based Fitbit, according to a statement on Friday. This represents a 71 per cent premium to Fitbit’s share price before Reuters reported that Google had made a bid on the company on October 28. The acquisition is Google’s second major purchase this year, after it agreed to pay $2.6 billion for Cloud software provider Looker in