Report: Groupon, foursquare in talks to team on mobile deals

Social commerce juggernaut Groupon is reportedly in negotiations with location-based mobile social network foursquare to jointly offer deals and discounts targeted to consumers who check-in at area restaurants and retailers via mobile device.

Using this map of Chicago, Groupon Now users can find hyper-localized details by category.

Citing sources familiar with the negotiations, All Things Digital reports the foursquare platform would integrate the new Groupon Now real-time offers service, which alerts users when there are live merchant deals in their immediate vicinity. For now, Groupon Now is limited to the Chicago market--last week, foursquare rival Loopt incorporated the new deals service into its location-enabled mobile solution, notifying users of nearby bargains and offering tools to share alerts with friends.

While foursquare declined comment, a Groupon spokesperson said "We see a lot of potential for Groupon Now to be showcased via services like Loopt. No bigger picture to announce yet, but stay tuned for additional collaborations."

Foursquare users check-in at local venues on their mobile devices, earning points and virtual badges for visiting establishments on a regular basis. Foursquare grew 3400 percent in 2010, and currently serves about 9 million users. Last month, The Wall Street Journal reported foursquare is seeking to raise $20 million to $40 million in new funding at a price that would value the startup as high as $500 million.

Each day, Groupon presents bargains from merchants spanning across more than 500 international markets. Last month, Groupon acquired Pelago, the iFund-backed developer behind the location-based mobile social networking application Whrrl. Financial details were not disclosed. The Whrrl application for iOS, Android and BlackBerry smartphones enables users to join Societies--i.e., groups of like-minded people sharing similar interests, passions and brand affinities who can exchange recommendations and experiences. The solution includes a Society Rewards program, which enables merchants to offer prizes and discounts when Whrrl users check in at their place of business.

For more:
- read this All Things Digital article

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