Amazon to buy Ring, maker of Wi Fi connected doorbells

FILE: Ring Logo (Photo: Ring/Facebook)

NEW YORK —  Amazon is expanding its home-security business by buying Ring, which makes Wi-Fi-connected cameras and doorbells.

The deal comes months after the online retailer started selling its own Wi-Fi-connected indoor security cameras, which work with its voice-assistant Alexa. The Ring acquisition helps Amazon better compete with Google’s Nest, which also makes cameras and doorbells.

Seattle-based Amazon.com Inc. declined to say how much it was paying for Ring or when the deal will close. The news was first reported by technology news site GeekWire.com.

Ring’s doorbells and cameras capture video that can be streamed on smartphones and other devices. The company promotes its gadgets as a way to catch package thieves, a nuisance that Amazon has been looking to remedy.

Last year, Amazon launched a service called Amazon Key that lets those who buy a Wi-Fi-connected lock to unlock their front doors so packages could be left inside their home.