2024-01-29 18:14:20
Washington (dpa)
Published on: Monday, January 29, 2024 – 8:13 PM | Last updated: Monday, January 29, 2024 – 8:13 PM
The American e-commerce and technology giant Amazon.com announced that it was abandoning the deal to acquire iRobot Corp., which manufactures the Roomba robot, for $1.4 billion, after a clash with the European Commission, which threatened to reject the deal.
Bloomberg News Agency reported that Amazon’s decision indicates increasing pressure on it to prove that its moves do not threaten competition in the markets in light of its increasing influence in the retail, cloud computing and entertainment markets.
At the same time, withdrawing from the deal relieves Amazon of the task of stemming the losses suffered by iRobot Corp., which is headquartered in Bedford, Massachusetts.
iRobot announced the retirement of its CEO, Colin Angel, at a time when the company is undergoing a restructuring plan that will lead to the elimination of about 350 jobs, equivalent to about 31% of the company’s total workforce. iRobot shares fell by approximately 16% before the start of official trading on the New York Stock Exchange today.
It is noteworthy that the European Commission, which is responsible for implementing competition and anti-trust protection rules in the European Union, is generally known for preferring measures that help address any risks that threaten competition in the markets rather than prohibiting mergers or acquisitions, but companies often cut corners and abandon acquisition deals. In the event that the Commission objects to the deal.
It is noteworthy that Amazon will pay $94 million to iRobot to compensate for retracting the deal, after the American company Adobe decided to withdraw from the deal to acquire the emerging company Figma for $20 billion after the European Union and Britain threatened to object to the deal.
Amazon refused to make any concessions to allay the concerns of the regulatory agencies regarding the acquisition of iRobot. Earlier, the European Commission warned that Amazon may limit the presence of robotic vacuums produced by other companies on its e-commerce platform in favor of its own products.
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