Google Owner Alphabet Inc. In Bid To Buy Fitbit Fitness-smartwatch Maker

Google's parent company Alphabet is in talks to buy fitness-smartwatch maker Fitbit and stock has jumped nearly 28% following a Reuters report that Google is preparing to buy the company.

The purchase would pit Alphabet against Apple, which is currently a major player in the health and fitness tracking space with its popular smartwatch.

The figure that Alphabet offered was not disclosed and it’s also unclear if any deal will actually take place. However, if it does, Google will have just bought themselves a nice little chunk of the US wearable market.

While Google has joined other major technology companies such as Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd in developing smart phones, it has yet to develop any wearable offerings.

Fitbit, of course, is the maker of popular wearables and fitness trackers including the recent Versa 2 smartwatch. Unlike the Apple Watch, which is iPhone-only, Fitbit's products work on both iOS and Android and provide a way for Android users to be able to connect to a wearable.

There is no certainty that the negotiations between Google and Fitbit will lead to any deal, the sources said, asking not to be identified because the matter is confidential. The exact price that Google has offered for Fitbit could not be learned.

Google has tried in the past to develop its own wearable platform called WearOS to rival Apple's smartwatch, but early efforts have failed to catch on with consumers despite attracting a host of high profile partners such as Tag Heuer, Fossil, Michael Kors and Movado.

Google and Fitbit declined to comment.