Groupon walks away from Google’s $6-bn takeover offer

Online discount start up site Groupon has reportedly walked away from Internet giant Google's $6-billion takeover offer and may go ahead with its initial public offering in 2011, The Chicago Tribune's Breaking Business Web site reported yesterday.

The two companies had been in talks for over a month, but rumours of Google closing the deal soon for around $6 billion reached fever pitch this week, (See: Google close to buying online discount site Groupon), which would have been Google's biggest acquisition to date after it bought online ad provider DoubleClick in 2007 for $3.1 billion from private equity firm Hellman & Friedman.

The Chicago Tribune, citing two sources with direct knowledge of the situation said that Chicago-based Groupon has turned down an acquisition offer from Google and is staying independent.

For a website that has been in business for just two years and is projected to generate revenues of $500 million this financial year, Groupon did not give reasons for turning down Google's offer.

Google's offer of a reported $6 billion is double the $3 billion of what rival Yahoo was rumoured to have offered to Groupon just two months back.

Groupon, the brainchild of its current CEO Andrew Mason, was launched in 2008 and is an electronic commerce site that has its spread in more than 300 markets and 35 countries having more than 33 million subscribers, making it one of the fastest-growing companies in history.