Google Said to Have Completed £1.6bn Buy of Discount Offers Website Groupon
Internet search giant Google is rumoured to have bought the discount website Groupon for approximately £1.6 billion.
Although neither company has officially commented on this latest speculation, which first appeared on technology news website Vator.tv, both companies are said to have been in discussions for the past few weeks over the potential deal.
Originally launched in 2008, the Groupon website offers users discounts and special offers at shops and businesses in their local area. It has around 20 million subscribers and spans 300 cities worldwide. Current figures reportedly estimate the company generates revenues of more than $50 million per month and is presently valued in excess of $1.3 billion.
Groupon has even started offering training programmes for businesses that have been overwhelmed by the volume of customers generated by their site.
It is said that the Groupon buy will provide a lucrative compliment to Google's Places tool, which offers lists of local businesses and services.