Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Google, GroupOn: Integration Will Be Key

Marissa Mayer at LeWeb 2009 / Day 1Image by earcos via FlickrThis is not a merger, this is an acquisition, but it feels like a merger. Granted this is no AOL Time Warner - thank God - but it feels like a merger more so than the YouTube acquisition felt. The YouTube acquisition felt like an acquisition, a big acquisition but still an acquisition. This feels like a merger.

Google is not the king - or queen, if that floats your boat - of social, that would be Facebook. But through this acquisition Google can hope to become the king of local. But that is not a given. That is not a given even if Google does a swell job of integrating GroupOn across its various properties in the local space. But if that integration is faulty, these were wasted dollars.

What are the chances? I think Google is going to do a super job of integrating GroupOn. GroupOn has been that big missing piece of Google's local puzzle. Google has made many attempts in the local space. This acquisition ties all of them together. And so the chances of great integration are very high.

Google just bought itself a cash cow. Don't kill the hen that lays the golden egg, buy it.

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