#Xiaomi is expected to buy #GoPro

The rumor mill is churning that we could see Xiaomi buying GoPro, the action camera manufacturer.

 Although GoPro is the most well-known brand in its niche, the company is essentially a sinking ship.

 Xiaomi buying GoPro would have advantages to the Chinese company, but would they be enough to outweigh the glaring problems?

 In the 15 years GoPro has been around, its financial standing has been as wild of a ride as the action videos filmed using its equipment. In 2014, when the company first went public, it was valued at about $3 billion.

 Now, with increased competition from lower-priced manufacturers and customers’ reluctance to upgrade their GoPro devices, GoPro is valued at about $700 million. In other words, it’s been a rough four years.

 At this point, the only real option to keep the GoPro brand alive is to sell the company to a larger company and use the larger company’s resources to innovate. Sources report, via The Information, that Chinese smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi buying GoPro is an idea that’s on the table.

 Xiaomi buying GoPro would provide one significant advantage: retail space in American stores. GoPro has deals with major electronics sellers such as Best Buy which put GoPro products in prominent locations on sales floors. If Xiaomi owned GoPro, it would be a backdoor way to feature Xiaomi merchandise to American buyers, something the company has been trying to do for some time now.

 However, the risk-reward ratio of a GoPro purchase might be too much for Xiaomi (or any buyer, really). Since GoPro’s stock price is going down the tubes and the company shows no signs of turning the drop around, spending a bunch of cash up-front might simply not be worth it to Xiaomi.

Source:AndroidAuthority

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