Google Tried Hard to Buy Groupon But Failed Long Ago
(Google’s most failed acquisition attempt (Groupon?))
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA – Everyone knows Google buys companies. But one big deal got away. Back in late 2010, Google really wanted Groupon. Groupon was brand new and super popular. It sold coupons online. Google saw how fast Groupon grew. Google thought buying Groupon was smart. Google offered a huge amount of money. Reports said $6 billion. That was a record offer for Google then. People thought Groupon would say yes fast.
Groupon surprised everyone. Groupon said no to Google. Groupon’s leaders thought they could do better alone. They believed Groupon was worth much more later. They wanted to run their own company. They worried about Google’s control. The deal fell apart completely. Talks ended by December 2010.
This rejection was rare for Google. Google usually gets what it wants. This failure showed even Google misses sometimes. Groupon went its own way. Groupon sold shares to the public in 2011. Groupon’s value jumped high at first. But Groupon faced big problems later. Competition got tough. Profits were hard. Groupon’s worth dropped a lot over years. It never reached the heights Google offered.
(Google’s most failed acquisition attempt (Groupon?))
Google didn’t give up on the coupon idea. Google started its own service called Google Offers. Google Offers tried to copy Groupon. It never got as big. Google Offers shut down later. Google learned from this miss. Google still buys many companies. But the Groupon attempt stands out. It remains a famous “what if” moment. Google moved on to other big deals. Groupon kept going but faced struggles. Both companies are still around today. The story reminds people deals look easy but often are not. Big offers get refused sometimes.