Amazon abandons deal to buy Roomba vacuum maker iRobot

WASHINGTON: US e-commerce giant Amazon is abandoning its plans to purchase the robot vacuum cleaner manufacturer iRobot following opposition from competition regulators.

The European Commission, for instance, said it saw a risk of Amazon reducing the prominence of similar rival products in the search results on its site, reported dpa news.

The cancellation of the deal has immediate consequences for Massachusetts-based iRobot.

The company said almost a third of its 350 employees are now due to be let go and long-time boss Colin Angle is retiring.

The takeover was initially valued at US$1.7 billion when it was announced in August 2022.

Amazon wanted to use the acquisition to give it a leg up as more consumers adopt home automation technologies.

iRobot is best known for its self-propelled vacuum cleaners under the brand name Roomba. Newer models use cameras to create a 3D scan of the household and use artificial intelligence to avoid obstacles.

While the US company was a pioneer in robot vacuum cleaners, there are now devices of this type from many suppliers.

Amazon Senior Vice President David Zapolsky criticised regulators in a statement: “This outcome will deny consumers faster innovation and more competitive prices, which we’re confident would have made their lives easier and more enjoyable.”

The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority also had launched a probe into the proposed acquisition. However, the British antitrust regulator later cleared the proposed deal noting that it would not lead to competition concerns in the UK.