The competition inspector of the European Union intends to restrict Amazon.com’s, opens new tab According to persons familiar with the situation, The Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday that the $1.4 billion acquisition of robot vacuum manufacturer iRobot creates a new chapter.

Following the bell, shares of the Roomba vacuum manufacturer fell by over 40% to $14.3.

According to WSJ, Amazon was advised that the transaction would probably be denied at its meeting with representatives of the European Commission on Thursday.

Regarding the report, Amazon chose not to comment.

According to an update on the European Commission website, the American tech giant failed to provide remedies until the deadline of January 10th to meet the antitrust regulator’s worries that the merger would limit competition in the robot vacuum cleaner sector.

“If the objective is to have more competition in the home robotics sector, this makes no sense,” said Matt Schruers, president of tech lobbying group Computer and Communications Industry Association.

“Blocking this deal may well leave consumers with fewer options, and regulators cannot sweep that fact under the rug,” Schruers added.

In August 2022, the e-commerce behemoth revealed its intentions to acquire iRobot in an effort to expand its line of smart gadgets, which currently includes wall-mounted smart displays, smart thermostats, security systems, and voice assistant Alexa.

The EU’s antitrust authority, the European Commission, has until February 14 to decide whether to accept or reject the arrangement.

(Adapted from Reuters.com)