After weeks of speculation, Google is reportedly buying the home-monitoring startup Dropcam, which will allow the behemoth to physically enter the homes of consumers. The price tag is said to be $555 million.
The acquisition, which will fold Dropcam into Google’s Nest Labs, was one in a spate of recent high-profile purchases by the search giant, which retired its Don’t Be Evil motto about five years ago.
The tech commentariat quickly suggested that there is some wickedness inherent in the purchase of Dropcam, especially given that the company already trades on the personal data of its users.
Okay, so I get why Google/Nest is buying Dropcam, but, uh, for people already creeped out by Google, buying surveillance cameras won’t help — Mike Masnick (@mmasnick) June 21, 2014
Google, via Nest, acquires DropCam, and Dave Eggers’ The Circle moves to non fiction — Dave Michels (@DaveMichels) June 21, 2014
Google announcing the Dropcam acquisition on a Friday evening at 5 PM is strange, almost like they know what the reaction is going to be. — Oliver Cameron (@olivercameron) June 21, 2014
Earlier this year, Google announced it had purchased Titan Aerospace, a high-altitude drone manufacturer, swooping in on a property that Facebook had expressed interest in. And now from both high and low, the company will have the technology to see us.
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SOURCE: ADAM CHANDLER
The Wire
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