Australian IoT vendor Buddy Platform to acquire smart lighting company LIFX

Australian Internet of Things (IoT) vendor, Buddy Platform, has agreed to acquire smart lighting company LIFX in a US$70 million deal.

LIFX, originally established in Victoria and now headquartered in the US, has its products stocked and sold through traditional and online retailers such as Best Buy, Amazon, JB Hi-Fi, Bunnings and Beacon Lighting.

Buddy Platform, also an Australian company, specialises mainly in IoT and cloud-based technology through its core offerings: Buddy Cloud, Buddy OHM and Parse on Buddy. It has agreed to buy LIFX for US$70 million, in a deal which it says it can sell smart spaces-related services overlaid on LIFX light products while at the same time enabling LIFX to substantially expand.

LIFX CEO Tim Peters has said that:

Since 2012, LIFX has been at the forefront of connected lighting and has sought to fundamentally change the way people think about lighting and the spaces they occupy… we are very excited to join forces with Buddy to expand our customer-base, further our reach, introduce real-time energy monitoring from our lights and enter new and exciting markets.

David McLauchlan, CEO of Buddy Platform has said that:

This is a transformational transaction that we’re announcing today….As the demand from both commercial and retail customers for energy monitoring solutions increases, it makes perfect sense that we look to combine our Buddy Ohm platform with a product that can be found in every building and every space in the world -lighting.

The deal is subject to shareholder approvals and Buddy Platform is sending out notices to its shareholders to convene a general meeting to vote on the deal. If the deal does pass shareholder approval, Buddy Platform expects the deal to close by the end of next month (March 2019).