Kickstarter darling Pebble shut down after being bought for $40m

Wearables maker Fitbit buys smartwatch startup for fraction of reported value in 2015

Smartwatch maker Pebble has sold to Fitbit in a deal that leaves it shutting down all manufacturing, refunding Kickstarter backers, and warning current owners that their watches may stop working at some point in the future.

The deal, according to a report from Bloomberg, values the smartwatch startup at less than $40m. If true, that is a massive drop from earlier reported acquisition attempts. Techcruch says Pebble was first offered $740m by watchmaker Citizen in 2015, and then $70m by Intel in early 2016. Pebble's chief executive, Eric Migicovsky, reportedly refused both offers.