If you believe the rumor mill, it looks like Google has just completed a huge acquisition to buy the global deal site Groupon, at a blistering price tag of $2.5 billion.
Groupon is a location-aware website that brings up special offers for the city you’re in, ranging from half-off pet spa treatments to good deals on lunch. The site employs hundreds of freelance deal seekers who find local offers all across the world and write up descriptions in a snarky, humorous tone.
According to the rumors, which originated on a site called Vator.tv, Google and Groupon have been in buyout discussions for weeks and just recently struck a final deal.
It would make sense for Google, which is always looking to increase its presence in offering local services to users. This would seem to be a natural expansion to either Google Shopping or Google Places. Either way, Google is sure to have fun integrating Groupon’s world-class constantly-updating deal news into its other online products.
Having just launched two years ago, Groupon already has more than 20 million subscribers and has reported revenue of more than $50 million per month.
