8coupons acquires Android app Clipless

October 23, 2013 — Fusion DigiNet

8coupons-med8coupons, a hub and B2B platform for local deals, has acquired the Android app, Clipless, which seeks out and alerts shoppers when they are in close proximity of deals.

Founder and developer of Clipless, Michael Barnathan, has joined 8coupons full-time as Head of Mobile, leading development and strategy. In this role, Michael will oversee the rebrand of the Clipless Android app and relaunch of 8coupons’ iOS app with a new user interface, updated functionality, intelligence and content.

“Clipless is a perfect fit with 8coupons’ mission and has accelerated our mobile technology pipeline,” said 8coupons co-founder and CEO, Landy Ung. “We’re always looking to give customers a better experience and bring 8coupons closer to becoming their personal concierge for daily life.“

USA, New York

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Groupon acquires SideTour

September 18, 2013 — Fusion DigiNet

grouponGroupon has acquired SideTour, a marketplace that helps people discover, book and host  local activities. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.

SideTour events are intimate gatherings, averaging 12 attendees, and span food, drink, architecture, history, art and much more. SideTour currently offers more than 500 public and private events with more than 400 hosts using the platform. Hosts include chefs, artists, Olympic medalists, casting directors and sommeliers.

“The addition of SideTour’s curated local experiences furthers our vision of Groupon as the go-to place for consumers to find just about anything, anywhere, anytime,” said GrouponLive General Manager Greg Rudin. “By offering these highly personalized activities, tours and memorable things to do through Groupon, we can deliver even more fun ways for our customers to explore and discover the best local experiences.”

Founded in 2011, SideTour will continue to operate as a separate entity for some time, and Groupon will distribute their events to its  active customers through its email, web and mobile channels.

USA, Chicago, IL

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Groupon acquires last-minute travel app Blink

September 15, 2013 — Fusion DigiNet
grouponGroupon has acquired last-minute travel app Blink, a travel app dealing in discounted same-day bookings for European hotels. The deal will help bolster Groupon’s Getaways travel business. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.

“We are very excited to welcome the Blink team to the Groupon family,” said Aaron Cooper, senior vice president of Groupon Getaways. “The combination of a fantastic mobile app, same-day inventory management for properties and a team that is obsessed with mobile and last-minute travel will help us further expand our travel business as the go-to destination for great deals on great places to stay.”

The Blink app will be rebranded “Blink by Groupon” and will operate separately from the Groupon parent business.

USA, Chicago, IL

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WGSN acquires Mindset Communicaco e Marketing Ltda in Brasil

September 4, 2013 — Fusion DigiNet

wgsnWGSN, the global trend forecasting service, has acquired Mindset Communicaco e Marketing Ltda, its marketing partner in the Latin American market.

Mindset is an advisory agency dedicated to research and analysis of future and current consumer behavior. It works with many leading companies in Brazil and brings a loyal subscriber base and great relationships with major retailers, merchandisers and designers across the region. Mindset has been a reseller of WGSN’s trend service subscription for nine years.

This agreement will provide Mindset access to WGSN’s infrastructure, wider global markets and their expertise in technology, content, operations and customer excellence. It will enable WGSN to be even closer to its customers in Latin America and create local content direct for that market. It will also enable other Top Right Group businesses to benefit from Mindset’s expertise in Brazil and across the LATAM region.

Julie Harris, CEO of WGSN and Planet Retail commented: “We are delighted to announce this acquisition, which not only further strengthens WGSNs position in the Latin American market, but is also part of a wider strategic objective to expand our trend, retail and intelligence services in new and developing markets.”

This is the group’s second acquisition this year following the purchase of certain online assets of Mudpie, a provider of fashion trend forecasting with more than 200 customers worldwide.

Top Right Group Latin America is headquartered in Sao Paulo and will shortly move to a new office near Faria Lima.

UK, London & Sao Paulo

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LDC acquires a significant stake in price comparison service USWITCH.COM

August 10, 2013 — Fusion DigiNet

ldc_logoLDC has backed the MBO of uSwitch.com, one of the most recognised brands and established businesses in the UK price comparison market.

LDC has acquired a significant stake in the business with the vendors Forward Internet Group retaining a substantial minority holding. Both investors will align with the existing management team who will also have a minority holding in the business. LDC’s focus will be on supporting the company’s strong management team to deliver on its clear vision and compelling growth strategy.

Founded in 2000, uSwitch.com is a UK-based free, impartial price comparison and switching service. It allows consumers to compare prices for a range of energy, communications and financial services.
Since its acquisition by FIG in 2009, uSwitch.com has significantly accelerated its growth. uSwitch employs 135 permanent staff and last year was ranked the top website by Hitwise, the leading global online competitive intelligence service, in the ‘Business and Finance – Utilities’ category, having been runner up for the previous three years.
The company has grown both organically and through acquisition, with its recent purchase of Top10.com, a popular broadband and mobile phone comparison business.

FIG is a privately held investment company that creates, acquires and invests in web and consumer businesses and has a portfolio of over 25 companies.

Daniel Sasaki, Managing Director of LDC London commented, “Our role is to back British growth companies and we are delighted to help foster the expansion and enhance the performance of uSwitch.com, which has established itself as one of the most well-regarded businesses and strongest brands in the price comparison market. It plays a key role as a consumer champion, giving people the tools to secure the best deals on all their essential utility, internet and financial services products and also contributes to making these areas of the UK economy more efficient, which will help to drive the country’s economic recovery.”

UK, London

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Shopzilla acquires Zappli

July 11, 2013 — Fusion DigiNet

shopzillaAccording to TechCrunch, shopping network Shopzilla has acquired start-up Zappli, a San Francisco based developer of mobile social shopping app myShopanion and mobile checkout app InstaBuy. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.

zappliThe Zappli team will join Shopzilla, working out of their existing locations in San Francisco and South East Asia. Zappli’s CEO and co-founder, Philippe Suchet, becomes Chief Strategy Officer of Shopzilla and Zappli’s CTO and co-founder, Chandra Siva will lead key technology initiatives at Shopzilla.

Shopzilla’s CEO Bill Glass said that of specific interest to Shopzilla is Zappli’s mobile commerce technology

Read more at TechCrunch

USA, Los Angeles, CA & San Francisco, CA

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eBay acquires 2dehands.be and 2ememain.be

July 4, 2013 — Fusion DigiNet

ebay2eBay has acquired 2dehands.be and 2ememain.be, online classifieds sites in Belgium. 2dehands.be and 2ememain.be have 5.5 million unique visitors coming to the sites each month. The sites will join the eBay Classifieds Group. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.

According to the ebay blog, “eBay Classifieds Group understands the importance of a local classifieds presence and offering, fitting the needs of the Belgian consumer. The 2dehands.be and 2ememain.be sites will continue to be run by local teams who understand the nuances of the local culture.”2dehands

It continues, “eBay Classifieds Group will invest in the further development of the local Belgian businesses, enhancing the platforms to be faster and more intuitive for users. Furthermore, given eBay’s expertise in creating leading mobile platforms and the enormous potential for mobile growth for 2dehands.be and 2ememain.be, the development of innovative mobile technologies is a priority for the business.”

USA, San Jose & Belgium, Brussels

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Snapdeal.com has acquired Shopo.in.

June 3, 2013 — Fusion DigiNet

snapdealIndian shopping site Snapdeal.com has acquired Shopo.in. Shopo is an online marketplace for Indian handcrafted, handmade and designer goods.Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The deal was announced on the Shop.in homepage with a one line notice. All links on the Shop.in homepage now lead to Snapdeal pages.

India, Delhi

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YottaMark acquires personalised food information company ShopWell

May 31, 2013 — Fusion DigiNet

HARVESTMARK ACQUIRES SHOPWELLYottaMark has acquired substantially all the assets of ShopWell Solutions, Inc., the personalised food information company.  YottaMark will integrate the ShopWell team into its HarvestMark Insights group, and ShopWell’s website and mobile applications will become YottaMark branded properties. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.

The ShopWell app helps people make smart decisions about the food they eat. Personalised results show easy-to-understand food scores and recommend foods based on the shopper’s specific dietary needs. At home or in the store, shoppers simply scan a food’s barcode to get nutrition information and find out if the food is a good match. The recommendation engine technology is powered by patent-pending algorithms designed by Registered Dietitians and statisticians, and draws on guidelines set by the Food and Drug Administration, U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Institute of Medicine, and the latest peer reviewed research.

“This acquisition anchors HarvestMark’s strategy as the leading provider of trusted information about food, and provides a critical channel to reach shoppers across the entire grocery store”, said Elliott Grant , YottaMark’s Founder & CTO.  He added, “a producer will now be able to determine which characteristics drive preference and repeat purchase.  A retailer will have the ability to rapidly measure how merchandizing, store operations or supply decisions are affecting shopper satisfaction.  In today’s highly competitive food market – this edge provided by shopper insights can make the difference between a profitable product and failure.”

USA, Redwood City, CA

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Answers acquires Webcollage

May 29, 2013 — Fusion DigiNet

Answers, operator of answers.com, has acquired Webcollage, a SasS platform for managing and publishing rich product information. Founded in 1999, Webcollage has over 1,000  consumer brands who create and publish rich product descriptions, videos, and interactive tours through their  network of retail e-commerce sites. Webcollage has headquarters in New York City and R&D center in Tel Aviv, Israel. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

“Webcollage is a perfect extension to Answers’ product suite for retailers and brands,” said David Karandish, CEO of Answers. “Consumer manufacturers and retailers who trust Webcollage as a publishing platform can now benefit from Answers’ complementary products for product reviews, product Q&A, retailer reputation management, and branded consumer engagement. With the stellar Webcollage team, we are committed to making Webcollage customers even more successful.”

USA, St. Louis, MI & New York, NY

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