Google-Fitbit deal criticised by EU consumer group as concerns grow

Google’s plan to buy Fitbit is running into a wall of antitrust and privacy concerns in the US, Europe and Australia, where competition officials are increasingly wary of how Internet giants can exert control over data. The deal advances the plans of Google parent Alphabet Inc to expand in the health-care sector by adding data from Fitbit’s more than 28 million users. — Reuters

Google’s takeover of fitness tracker Fitbit could be “a game-changer” for health data that will need close European Union scrutiny, consumer advocates said.

Reviewing how Fitbit’s data could add to Google’s powerful position in online advertising makes the deal a test case for regulators, said BEUC, which represents consumer associations across Europe. It argues that wearables create a new frontier by tracking users’ health and location around the clock.