Yelp
Yeah, the story is now a fact. Some thing happened behind the doors and as a result we are not going to see a Google acquisition of Yelp!. The Deal was almost done with both parties agreeing to a $550 million plus earning offer from Google. What could have turned the tide then? (TechCrunch reports)
Yelp is a popular local listing site. It could have been a major boost for Google Local. It is highly probable that competitors of Google have arrived with better offers to prevent it taking an upper hand in Local Business arena. Speculations are that it could be Yahoo, Apple or Microsoft. I am not sure why Apple would be so interested in Local Business listing, unless Mr Steve Jobs had a suppressed interest in that area of marketing since long. Microsoft Bing and Yahoo Local have a genuine interest in the field. Did they turn up with better offers? Or is Yelp looking to build pressure on Google for higher terms.
Wait and Watch.
