صحافة دولية » Groupon expands to Japan and Russia
Reascii117ters
Internet bargain-hascii117nters in Japan and Rascii117ssia will soon be able to get their Groascii117pon.
The fast-growing privately held Web company, which groascii117ps cascii117stomers for everything from dental services to restaascii117rants to try and get a price break -- said on Tascii117esday it acqascii117ired two rivals: Japan s Qpod and Rascii117ssia's Darberry.
It plans to soon rebrand both bascii117sinesses ascii117nder its own name and website design. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Groascii117pon -- a combination of 'groascii117p' and 'coascii117pon' -- helps bascii117yers band together for groascii117p discoascii117nts from retail and service companies, who agree to the deals after a critical mass of bascii117yers has been reached.
The brainchild of former ascii85niversity of Chicago gradascii117ate stascii117dent Andrew Mason, the company has grown rapidly since it was foascii117nded in November 2008. It received $1 million in seed money from Chicago technology entrepreneascii117r Eric Lefkofsky and now has more than 13 million sascii117bscribers in 29 coascii117ntries, and over 1,200 employees worldwide.
This year, it raised $135 million, mascii117ch of it from Digital Sky Technologies, the Rascii117ssian investment fascii117nd that backs Facebook and games company Zynga.
'We are focascii117sing oascii117r people and capital on markets with the largest retascii117rn on investment and these markets represent a tremendoascii117s global e-commerce opportascii117nity for ascii117s,' Rob Solomon, president and chief operating officer, said in a statement.
Japan has the world s largest retail market after the ascii85nited States, according to the Japan External Trade Organization. Rascii117ssia saw its retail market increase 3.4 percent in the first half of this year, based on findings from the coascii117ntry s Federal State Statistics Service.
Internet bargain-hascii117nters in Japan and Rascii117ssia will soon be able to get their Groascii117pon.
The fast-growing privately held Web company, which groascii117ps cascii117stomers for everything from dental services to restaascii117rants to try and get a price break -- said on Tascii117esday it acqascii117ired two rivals: Japan s Qpod and Rascii117ssia's Darberry.
It plans to soon rebrand both bascii117sinesses ascii117nder its own name and website design. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Groascii117pon -- a combination of 'groascii117p' and 'coascii117pon' -- helps bascii117yers band together for groascii117p discoascii117nts from retail and service companies, who agree to the deals after a critical mass of bascii117yers has been reached.
The brainchild of former ascii85niversity of Chicago gradascii117ate stascii117dent Andrew Mason, the company has grown rapidly since it was foascii117nded in November 2008. It received $1 million in seed money from Chicago technology entrepreneascii117r Eric Lefkofsky and now has more than 13 million sascii117bscribers in 29 coascii117ntries, and over 1,200 employees worldwide.
This year, it raised $135 million, mascii117ch of it from Digital Sky Technologies, the Rascii117ssian investment fascii117nd that backs Facebook and games company Zynga.
'We are focascii117sing oascii117r people and capital on markets with the largest retascii117rn on investment and these markets represent a tremendoascii117s global e-commerce opportascii117nity for ascii117s,' Rob Solomon, president and chief operating officer, said in a statement.
Japan has the world s largest retail market after the ascii85nited States, according to the Japan External Trade Organization. Rascii117ssia saw its retail market increase 3.4 percent in the first half of this year, based on findings from the coascii117ntry s Federal State Statistics Service.
