Samsung Electronics Co (KRX: 005930) Will Purchase Tech Startup SmartThings

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Samsung Electronics Co (KRX: 005930) announced that it will purchase SmartThings, a tech startup with a high profile that very well embodies the trend of bringing innovative technology to everyday devices.

The announcement of the deal did not reveal any financial details. However, analysts and industry experts have estimated the price of the deal to be about $200 million.

SmartThings is a startup company that was started in Washington D.C., but has since moved its operations to Palo Alto, California. Samsung has operations in the area and has been showing interest in investing and working with startup companies.

This deal is the latest indication that big corporate companies are staking out positions in what is known in the industry as the “Internet of Things.” This terms consists of nearly any product that can be modified or expanded with communications or computing technologies. These products include smoke detectors, door locks, new-wave security cameras, and wearable devices.

SmartThings has set up a particularly influential position for itself since it was founded in 2012. The company enables customers to connect their gadgets and devices and sync them onto one single smartphone application and hardware hub. SmartThings sells a home controller device that retails for $99. This device has broader capabilities, which includes running an online service and setting services specifications to help developers generate designs for devices that work hand in hand and are controlled by apps on smartphones.

According to Alex Hawkinson, the chief executive of SmartThings, the company’s goal is to create a platform that every human can use, and to transform every home into a smarthoe.

The company has already manufactured more than 8,000 applications and 1,000 devices as a result of the company’s efforts. As a result of the relationship with Samsung, Hawkinson stated that the startup company will not solely work with the South Korean company and be bound to its products and technologies, but will continue working with multiple partner companies.

Hawkinson said that the company will remain completely independent.

David Eun, the head of Samsung’s open innovation center, stated that the South Korean company understands that consumers will likely have devices from many suppliers. Therefore, all companies will reap the benefits if the companies and their devices will all work together. Mr. Eun stated that “We believe open is the way to go.”

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