Recently, Apple’s AirTags, although convenient, have become tools used for tracking other people. Even though Apple knows about this problem and is trying to find ways to solve it, the many tracking incidents with AirTags seem to have left their mark in the tracking device segment. According to Chris Hul, the CEO of Likfe360, the company that bought Tile, the stalking issues caused by Apple’s AirTags have driven the Tile sales and stocks down (via AppleInsider).As reported by the Financial Review, Chris Hul said in an investor call, “We’re watching the privacy concerns relating to Apple AirTags and stalking risks. The scrutiny Apple is facing in the press is moderating growth of the category overall. This may be a headwind for standalone hardware sales until the situation resolves and the category is able to more fully emerge. That’s slowed things down, so it’s a wait and see moment.“Besides the tracking incidents with Apple’s AirTags, Chris Hul also blames the global chip shortage crisis. Chris Hul said in a statement, “Clearly, we’d prefer to be less supply-constrained because it would enable us to capitalize on the second part of our bet with Tile.“
But what is the second part? Well, according to Chris Hul, hardware sales aren’t the main focus for the company, but simply a means to achieve its goals of increasing membership sales. Chris Hul also said, “We’re going to do everything we can to prioritize membership over direct hardware sales.“
Let’s just hope that Chris Hul’s plans don’t include selling users’ location data again. As we previously reported, Life360 has an app that allows parents to track their children, but at the same time, it sold the location data of its users to hedge funds or firms that used it for targeted advertising.
