Amazon acquires Ring, maker of video doorbells and other IoT devices

In October, the company rolled out Amazon Key, a camera-enabled smart lock that recognizes couriers or cleaners and allows customers to grant them access to their homes remotely.

Amazon is buying smart doorbell maker Ring, a deal that will allow Amazon to work with the team on home security, the companies said. Amazon declined to discuss the terms.

Ring is set to be one of Amazon’s most expensive takeovers, after its £9.9 billion ($13.7 billion) deal a year ago for Whole Foods Market.

Analyst Michael Pachter said that security and alarm provider ADT Corp. could experience a huge drawback, since Ring’s camera technology is more superior to physical security.

What this will mean is that the Ring brand will likely carry on.

“Acquiring Ring was a smart play for Amazon in its ongoing quest to further solidify its dominance in the smart home space”. Now, the company appears to be expanding on its smart-home initiative with the acquisition of Santa Monica smart doorbell startup Ring. While checks would presumably be in place, there’s the added peace of mind that the Amazon Key system could integrate Ring doorbells to complete those checks before unlocking the consumer’s front door.

One prominent investor did latch on early, however – Virgin Group billionaire Richard Branson, who participated in a million funding round in 2015.

United States security and alarm company ADT could be the biggest loser, he added.

Ring will also be able to record the visitors just like a CCTV camera. But it also points out they are ready to compete with Google’s Nest video doorbell, as video doorbells are really popular in the US, UK and across Europe. Amazon stock closed down 0.7 per cent.

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Amazon has bolstered its presence in the field of smart security cameras and other associated paraphernalia with its latest acquisition, the Ring, makers of smart cams, door bells and lights.