Daily deal fatigue is trending. The e-bubble created by Groupon, LivingSocial and Google Offers is springing leaks. Groupon, the granddaddy of the genus, is hitting the proverbial wall in earnest. Some of its early backers are jumping ship, the Wall Street Journal reports, potentially indicative of a larger loss of faith in the business model as a whole. 

Andreessen Horowitz, purchaser of 5.1 million shares at $7.90 each has sold them all; Fidelity sold one-third of its stake (down to 13.2 million) between March 31 and June 30; Maverick Capital retains fewer than 2 million shares as of June 30, down from 6.3 million three months earlier.

Since its November IPO, Groupon shares have dropped 82%, making it now worth $3 billion, about half of Google’s purchase offer in 2010. Groupon is not alone in disappointing expectations for investors and analysts as Facebook and Zynga join a collective memory of the dot-com bust in 2000. Daily Deal Media reports that 798 daily deal sites closed down between July and December, 2011. Continue reading...

Ten years ago, brandchannel quoted a Google spokesperson as saying “It seems counterintuitive to the concept of stickiness, but the point of Google is to allow people to find information as soon as possible and get on their way.” Ten years later, it appears Google would prefer its users to stay in its realm for as long as possible.

Google has come a long way since Sergey Brin and Larry Page started a research project at Stanford in 1996 that would eventually grow into a company employing 30,000 and producing nearly $30 billion in revenue each year. In doing so, Google has expanded its offering from a search engine to a full-fledged suite of services including email, social networking, cloud storage for files and music, and daily deals. Google even recently opened its own branded products store in London.

Google has always been an innovative company, but it has seen some of its innovative thunder stolen by others such as Facebook and Groupon. In order to remain the first-in-mind internet destination for its users, Google has decided to take to some of its web competitors on their own turf. Google+ takes aim at Facebook, and Google Offers is targeted at daily deals sites Groupon and Living Social. As it keeps rolling out new products, Google seems content to throw its brand's name in front of just about any serve it's offering: Google Voice, Google Docs, Google Maps, etc.Continue reading...

The Facebook/Google wars are heating up.

Google is enticing sign-ups for Google+ — which zoomed out of invitation-only mode and into public worldwide release in just under the 90 days — by touting its "Hangouts" video-chat feature.

The virtual lounge, which lets up to nine people link up and chat on video and host online broadcasts, will be demonstrated via a live demo tonight, when The Black Eyed Peas’ will.i.am hosts the first "Hangout on Air" at 7pm Eastern.Continue reading...

Alibaba takes on Baidu for dominance in China.

Android rises to #2 smartphone platform in Europe.

Apple ponders disposition of its cash horde.

California Pizza Kitchen plans brand revival.

Cochlear recalls line of ear implants.

Deutsche Bank launches Autobahn App Market.

Ford unveils new three-cylinder EcoBoost engine at Frankfurt auto show.

GameStop to sell branded gaming tablet.Continue reading...

Google has just launched a new amalgamated search engine, What Do You Love, as its Google+ platform is setting a land-speed record for fastest social launch.

WDYL.com lets users explore their passions (food, movies, film, monkeys) and pulls in results from Google’s various search products: photos, video, books, maps, blogs, groups, news, patents.Continue reading...

The Daily Mail repeats "wild rumors" that P&G is planning to bid for Unilever.

Australia reverses ban on gay safe-sex ads.

Eastman Kodak launches recyling program.

Google launches +1 button as Twitter introduces one-click follow button.

Groupon expands real-time deals to New York and San Francisco as Google Offers goes live in Portland, OR.

Pfizer scores with soccer-themed web game in the UK.

Shaquille O'Neal announced his retirement from the NBA on Twitter, using video from new startup Tout.Continue reading...

Last week, Google launched a new service, Google Advisor, to help consumers make money decisions and compare financial products: credit cards, CDs, checking, and savings accounts.

Today, the search giant unveiled its own financial product, Google Wallet, at a press conference in New York, with partners Citi, MasterCard, First Data and Sprint, sharing the stage.

Can Google Banking be far behind?Continue reading...

Google is testing instant previews on ads as its Groupon competitor, Google Offers (tagline: "A new smart way to bring in customers") is now live in beta. Interestingly, Groupon also just hired Google executive Margo Georgladis as its new COO as it reportedly prepares for its IPO.

The appeal of taking on Groupon, which Google tried to buy for a reported $6 bilion, is clear. In the UK alone, half of Groupon users purchased five deals, proving the stickiness of group deals to consumers.