Kakao acquires kids’ smartwatch maker Kiwi Plus

Kakao, the operator of South Korea’s dominant mobile messenger KakaoTalk, said Thursday that it has acquired a 51 percent stake in Kiwi Plus, a local kids’ smartwatch and smartphone manufacturer.

The Korean mobile technology giant plans to invest around 10 billion won ($9.23 million) in making the acquisition, aimed at strengthening Kakao’s portfolio of hardware and internet of things technologies.

Founded in 2013, Kiwi Plus is a hardware manufacturer best-known for making Android-based IoT devices including the Kakao Kid’s Phone, Kakao Kid’s Watch and Line Kid’s Phone. Parents can use their smartphones to check their children’s locations and communicate with them.

By Sohn Ji-young (jys@heraldcorp.com)