Amazon Will Get EU Antitrust Approval for iRobot Acquisition

JAKARTA - Amazon   will obtain unconditional antitrust approval from the European Union (EU) for its US$ 1.4 billion (Rp. 21.7 trillion) acquisition of vacuum robot maker, iRobot. This was revealed by three sources familiar with the matter on Thursday, November 23.

Antitrust watchdogs around the world have stepped up scrutiny of Big Tech acquiring smaller competitors. They are  worried about the accumulation of data by a few companies and large players leveraging their dominance into new markets.

The European Commission, which acts as the EU's competition watchdog, warned Amazon in July that the deal could reduce competition in the robot vacuum cleaner market and strengthen the US company's dominant position as an online marketplace provider.

The commission, which is scheduled to rule on the deal on February 14, declined to comment. Amazon also has not responded to a request for comment to date.

The deal announced in  August will add iRobot's Roomba robot vacuum to Amazon's portfolio of smart devices, including voice assistant Alexa, smart thermostats, security devices and wall-mounted smart displays.

Britain's antitrust agency has given unconditional approval to the deal after a preliminary review.