Daily deals website Groupon has finally expanded it’s new, hyperlocal deals section Groupon Now! to New York City. IncTech reported the launch of the service in the company’s home city of Chicago in May, and now the Big Apple can get in on immediate, real-time deals from local places on Groupon’s website and mobile app. READ MORE
Following up on its prime competitor Groupon’s $750 million IPO earlier this month, LivingSocial is reportedly in talks with bankers to file an initial public offering of its own. According to CNBC, the IPO would be valued between $10 and $15 billion. READ MORE
Loren Bendele, CEO of Savings.com, got into the online savings game just before daily deals sites like Groupon became the horse to bet on. He says that the attention these daily deal sites are getting amounts to something more than buzz, but he’s confident there’s a place for his company in a marketplace where all the stalls seem to turn over monthly. His company has 85 employees and is profitable. His site draws close to 5 million visitors a month. READ MORE
A blogger for TechCrunch who has been investigating the business practices of daily deal sites like Groupon writes that the company may fall under statutes set forth in 27 states for the regulation of gift cards. READ MORE
Groupon, the company that connects customers with deals at local businesses, can seem an attractive way to cut advertising costs. Yet, some have said that the company’s cash flow structure has left them vulnerable, and that businesses and consumers stand to suffer in the long term. READ MORE
Shares of Pandora Media’s IPO were set at $16 and jumped to $20 at opening this morning. Pandora claims 90 million users and says that they get a new one about every second, but the company has still not posted a profit. In this way, it is like many other technology start-ups queuing to go public. READ MORE
Coupons.com, the largest provider of digital coupons, announced it has received a $200 million investment from a group of institutional investors, including several mutual funds reports TechCrunch’s Rip Empson. Apparently, sources say the huge investment comes at a supposed $1 billion valuation, which is based on $100 million in expected revenues for 2011, about double from 2010. The company is likely ramping up for a potential IPO next year. READ MORE
While it might seem innocuous that Groupon is offering a deal on seafood in Massachusetts, it’s actually the first time the daily deal giant is letting shoppers use supermarket loyalty cards to conduct the transaction, writes Advertising Age’s Jack Neff. Groupon has partnered with two Boston marketing and analytics firms on the test with grocer Big Y, which is offering the deal. READ MORE
If you want to enter the daily deals market without anyone knowing, introduce it in a state with 15 people per square mile. That’s what Amazon did yesterday, rolling out AmazonLocal in Boise, Idaho. Despite Amazon’s stealth, The Next Web picked up on the story. READ MORE
Have you heard that daily deal juggernaut Groupon filed for an initial public offering? Of course you have — but what recently came to light is the price. The Chicago-based company filed to raise up to $750 million in its IPO, and documents filed with the SEC show a company with truly impressive growth–$713 million in revenue in 2010, up from $30 million in 2009–but still no profit. READ MORE
