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EU Approval for Google to Acquire Fitbit Due in December
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Google is set to win conditional European Union approval for its $2.1 billion takeover of health tracker Fitbit Inc. this month, people familiar with the discussions said. The deal could be approved after national competition authorities give their opinion, said the people who asked not to be named because the procedure isn’t public. The EU usually consults the so-called advisory committee on mergers days before it issues approval. While Google has agreed to concessions to allay EU antitrust concerns about its move into wearable fitness devices, its final pledge to European authorities hasn’t been disclosed. The rest of the world is looking to the EU regarding the monopoly  potential of the purchase. Given that Fitbit had a 2.6% share of wearables in Q320 down from 3.8% last year, the decision is less about national competition in the wearables market than it is about the control of the emerging “Hethtec” (ala Fintec) industry. Even the US deferred and is waiting until the EU decides.