Amber Neely
Announced on Monday morning, the deal, worth $450 million, will establish a long-term commitment to partnership with ADT and will give Google a 6.6% share of the company.
The move will combine Google Nest's hardware with ADT's installation, service, and monitoring. Google Nest customers will be offered both DIY and professionally installed security services.
"We're excited to partner with ADT to further our mission of building helpful devices for the home," said Rishi Chandra, GM and Vice President of Nest.
Google's purchase will include newly creates shares of Class B common stock, which grants them all the rights and preferences of ADT's commons stock. However, the company will not be able to vote on the election, appointment, or removal of directors. The deal is expected to close in the third quarter of 2020.
Both companies will commit an additional $150 million to be put toward co-marketing, product development, technology, and employee training.
"We are thrilled to partner with Google to provide the smart home market with a strong, differentiated product and service offering that integrates the best technology, hardware and smart home security expertise from our two brands." said Jim DeVries, President and CEO of ADT.
ADT plans to offer specific Google devices to its customers beginning this year, but the bulk of integration is scheduled to take place in 2021. It isn't yet clear what's going to happen to the "Blue by ADT" line of HomeKit-ready security cameras.
In January, Google pushed to migrate Nest users over to using Google accounts. The search company failed to support the Apple TV version of the Nest app properly by failing to allow migrated customers to log in on Apple's streaming set-top box.
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16 Comments
Google as creepy security guard, except this one watches everyone, everywhere and gets paid to sell the information on you.
Did any of this come up at the Congressional hearings Google was involved in? Follow the money trail. Who ends up benefiting from Google spreading its tentacles into yet another area with access not only to user's personal information but physical access to their homes and businesses. Is Google receiving money from the FBI and NSA? If not now will these organizations, along with Police departments, start tossing some money in their direction to get preferred access to ADT data?
Luckily I dumped my Nest hardware when they were bought by Google and will never use a service like ADT. If a burglar wants to get into my house they will find a way to bypass any home security device and nowadays police are less likely to even respond to a call so why throw away money?
I threw away an ADT flyer last week primarily due to data collection and retention concerns. Though several neighbors subscribe to ADT I could not justify becoming a subscriber. Reading that Google is now partnering with ADT let me know that I dodged a bullet.