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Amazon in talks to invest in LivingSocial -report

Wed Dec 1, 2010 7:00pm EST

* LivingSocial is No. 2 social buying firm after Groupon

* Amazon could invest as Google reportedly eyes Groupon

* LivingSocial has 10 million subscribers worldwide

LOS ANGELES, Dec 1 (Reuters) - Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) has held advanced talks about a possible strategic investment in daily deals company LivingSocial at a valuation of several billion dollars, influential tech blog All Things Digital reported.

Interest in LivingSocial has increased, the Website said, amid widespread reports that Google Inc (GOOG.O) is eyeing an acquisition of discount coupon provider Groupon for as much as $6 billion [ID:nN30246836].

Groupon's closest rival is currently booking an average of more than $1 million a day and is projected to book well more than $500 million in revenue in 2011, according to the blog.

An investment by Amazon in Washington, D.C.-based LivingSocial, the No. 2 social buying company after Groupon, would involve a deep operating partnership, All Things Digital reported, citing sources close to the situation.

Amazon and LivingSocial both declined comment.

LivingSocial, which is backed by Lightspeed Venture Partners, Grotech Ventures and former AOL head Steve Case, has 10 million subscribers worldwide, including in the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia. (Reporting by Alex Dobuzinskis; editing by Gunna Dickson)

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Comments (1)
localdealsites wrote:
The number of Groupon copycat sites has exploded in the last year. With a low barrier to entry, high margins, and even white label software platforms that support the group buying method, there are small players entering the market daily. LocalDealSites.com currently lists over 130 Groupon-like daily deal websites. http://www.localdealsites.com/

Dec 03, 2010 12:40am EST  --  Report as abuse
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