Amazon is shutting down its health and wellness division Halo. The business unit that offers various health monitoring devices and services will be shuttered at the end of July this year, i.e. on July 31, 2023. The company will refund all customer purchases made in the preceding 12 months.
Amazon introduced Halo in August 2020, during the peak of the coronavirus pandemic. It started with the first-gen Halo Band, a fitness band that came with a subscription service for expert health monitoring and analysis services. The company followed up with a succeeding model in 2021. Called Halo View, it addressed one of the biggest complaints about the original band: its lack of a screen.
Most recently, Amazon launched a contactless bedside sleep tracker and smart alarm clock called Halo Rise. It debuted in September last year and came without cameras and microphones to provide peace of mind for privacy-conscious users. But a few months into its market release, Amazon is now pulling the plug on the Halo division. The company announced the decision on Wednesday. It has also sent emails to notify customers about this impending shutdown.
In its email, Amazon said that all Halo devices and the Halo app will stop functioning beginning on August 1. It has already stopped renewing monthly paid subscriptions and will refund the remaining balance to users who bought a prepaid subscription. The company will also refund device purchases made over the past year. Customers do not need to take any additional steps on their end.
However, if you wish to download or delete your Halo health data, you can do so until the July 31 deadline. Go to the Settings page in the Halo app to download your data, including your scan images. After that, all data will be deleted automatically. Amazon encourages customers to recycle Halo devices and accessories through the Amazon Recycling Program. It will cover the cost of shipping and recycling.
Amazon will lay off some Halo staff
As part of the Halo shutdown, Amazon will also lay off some employees. The company hasn’t specified how many workers will be laid off, but it may part with a sizable staff from the Halo division. This comes shortly after the e-commerce giant announced a second mass layoff affecting 9,000 employees. It cut more than 18,000 jobs across various business units in January this year. “For employees who are impacted by this decision, we are providing packages that include a separation payment, transitional health insurance benefits, and external job placement support,” Amazon said in its press release.
2023-04-27 15:08:47