If there was any doubt that 2016 was a bad year in the wristwear business, look no further than the 4th quarter results that Fitbit announced today. The company -- widely counted as the leader in the consumer wearables market -- had told stock analysts that it would sell about $725 million worth of trackers in the quarter; the actual number was about $580 million. Rather … [Read more...]
Fitbit Cuts Guidance, Stock Gets Hammered
Live by the wristband, die by the wristband. Fitbit reported its third-quarter earnings this afternoon, reporting year-over-year growth of 23 percent to $503.8 million. Analysts had been expecting $506.9 million, which doesn't sound like much of a miss; earnings of 19 cents per share met expectations. Unit sales grew 11 percent, and so did average selling price. The real … [Read more...]
ShotTracker TEAM Attracts Hoops Stars in $5M Seed Round
We last wrote about ShotTracker about two years ago, when the company first shipped its basketball analytics wearable. We're told now that that there's a team version of ShotTracker -- and that it's attracted former LA Laker Magic Johnson and former NBA Commissioner David Stern as part of a $5 million seed round. The standalone version of ShotTracker comprises a sensor on … [Read more...]
WSJ: Qualcomm Wants to Buy NXP
Qualcomm, the chip maker whose business is built almost entirely around processors and radios for mobile applications, is reportedly making a run at buying NXP, which pretty much owns the NFC chip business. The Wall Street Journal is reporting that a deal could come before the end of the year. NXP is a public company with a current market capitalization of $28 billion; its … [Read more...]
Is Jawbone Near the End?
It has not been a good year for Jawbone, the once-pioneering maker of fitness trackers and Bluetooth speakers, and it appears to be getting worse. Multiple reports over the weekend say that the company is running on fumes, unable to pay its third-party support vendor and nearly sold out of products. Jawbone had apparently been using the Portland, Maine company NexRep to … [Read more...]
Jawbone Raises $165 Million in a Down Round as President Heads Back to Google
If you still think that tech valuations will always grow the sky, you need to start paying attention. Troubled tracker/speaker/headset maker Jawbone just raised $165 million at a valuation about half its previous round. At the same time, the company confirmed that its president, Sameer Samat, was returning to Google. The new funding round valued the company at $1.5 billion. … [Read more...]
Adidas Buys Runtastic, as Gear Companies Continue Software Rollups
Adidas has a nice business going in wearable sports tech with its miCoach line, and just expanded its reach by buying Runtastic for $239 million. Runtastic sells a line of smart bands, smart monitors and scales -- some of which overlap Adidas's existing products. The real value is probably Runtastic's 70 million registered users. The Adidas deal is the latest rollup of … [Read more...]
Fitbit Posts Strong Q2 Results, So the Stock Drops
Business journalists learn early: a company, its products, and its stock are three distinct things. It's also a truism that stocks rise on speculation and drop on news -- even good news. So it's not entirely surprising that Fitbit had a great quarter but its stock immediately lost 10 percent of its value. Analysts had expected profit of 8 cents per share on $319 million in … [Read more...]
Apple’s Earnings Are Up; Doesn’t Break Out Watch Sales [Updated]
Apple announced its second quarter earnings today, up 38 percent supported by big sales increases in China and strong iPhone demand. The company did not break out Apple Watch sales, lumping them instead with Apple TV, Beats products, and iPods. Sales for that group of products grew 49 percent in the second quarter, to $2.64 billion. CEO Tim Cook said watch sales were … [Read more...]
Token Wristband Concept Puts Your Money on Your Wrist
The Seattle design studio Artefact Group has a neat design concept for a way to meld wearable tech with financial management. The Token wristband -- which is strictly conceptual and not something you'll be able to buy anytime soon -- presents hardware and interface ideas that simplify the processing of spending and tracking money. Think of it as Coin rethought. And since … [Read more...]