Logitech, the company known for developing computer accessories, revealed that it had acquired ASTRO, another accessory company mainly catering to console gamers in an $85 million deal. The sale will officially come into effect in August this year. This move is being interpreted by many as Logitech’s attempt at gaining a foothold in the console market as well, just like it has in the PC accessory business.
Logitech acquires Astro
Logitech G is a line of PC gaming centric products ranging from headsets to mice and keyboards and anything in between.
These products are quite popular with computer gamers. However, till recently, Logitech was seen as a company which primarily focused on PC gaming and did not develop products for users who play on gaming consoles.
However, acquiring Astro indicates that Logitech is ready to expand its business from simply PC centric product development to support console accessories. In doing so, there is perhaps no better company than Astro, which has been a leader in console gaming accessories over the years. In a press statement, Logitech claimed that acquiring Astro is a step toward achieving a long term business goal for the company in which it sees itself as the leader of all gaming accessories produced.
Logitech revealed that it has no plans to shutter the Astro brand and that it is simply looking to maintain a foothold in both the markets. It sounds as if the Logitech G will stay focused on the PC equipment, while the newly acquired Astro will also keep providing high-quality console peripherals.
Astro peripherals work for PC as well
While it is true that the equipment developed by Astro has always worked relatively well on the PC as well, the company makes them keeping in mind the console gamers. A visit to the Astro home page also clearly indicates that the company is mainly focused on catering to the console gaming demographic.
However, both platform accessories unifying under one banner will certainly help matters. President of Astro, Jordan Reiss, claimed that his company has always held Logitech in high regard for their excellent product development and technological finesse. He, however, believed that this alliance between the two companies would now ensure that using the distribution channels of Logitech, Astro peripherals would reach those places where it has been unable to establish a market yet.
It remains to be seen whether Astro can keep churning out impressive consoles in the future after this deal. It also will have to be seen whether Logitech can give Astro the freedom to operate like it has until now or whether there will be some major changes in the way that Astro pursues its business.
