Back in 2013, a company called DoorBot went on Shark Tank and didn’t do very well. Oh, it got some investment, but it didn’t win the brass ring. It wasn’t a massive hit. So, needless to say, that same panel of investors is in for a little teasing now that Amazon has picked the former DoorBot, now Ring, for a cool $1 billion.
Amazon’s interest in Ring mostly has to do with getting into your house. Ring, if you’re unfamiliar, makes “smart” home security devices, like a camera with floodlights attached, a “video doorbell” that shows you who’s knocking on your door, and a full do-it-yourself security system with alarm keypads and the like. Amazon wants to be able to put a package in your house instead of on your doorstep, a goal of its Amazon Key program, and being able to offer its customers a security cam to ensure that the delivery guy isn’t helping himself to a beer before he leaves would go a long way towards making that happen.
Of course, if you won’t let Amazon in your house, it might talk you into keeping an eye on your packages. A pilot program with the LAPD in the Wilshire Park neighborhood, which has a property crime problem, drove down break-ins by 55%. Beyond that, the doorbells have been most useful for spotting the dirtbag walking around filching packages off of porches. Considering every stolen package costs them money, they’re probably willing to eat the cost of getting a video doorbell on every doorstep.
(via Marketwatch)