Facebook to test bargains-like GroupOn service - CNET (blog)

Facebook will soon begin testing a service that will provide its members handed over local, which will be in direct competition with the giant deals daily GroupOn.

The service will be tested in Dallas, Austin, Atlanta, San Francisco, San Diego and will expand the program of the social networking giant, which offers users deals to members when they use Facebook places is to save the local commercial counterthe company said. Members will be able to purchase deals and share with their friends on the network.

"Local businesses will be able to register to use this feature soon and people can find deals in the coming weeks," the Palo Alto, California-based company said today.

Facebook plans to sell trade agreements through its own sales team, as well as working with partners such as Gilt City, Home Run, Pop sugar City, Tippr, deals with the KGB, Plum District, achieving Local, Zozi and open a Table.

With 500 million members, Facebook make a sizable user base in its challenge for dominance on the market of trafficking, which brought $ 873 million in revenue last year and could bring to 3.93 billion by 2015, according to a projection of consulting firm BIA/Kelsey.

Chief among these competitors is Groupon, who has been riding growth half price massages, discounted meals at the restaurant, and negotiates trips. Chicago-based GroupOn, with 60 million users and over 39 million sold in its two years in business transactions is intended to beef up its muscle with an initial public offering later this year.

In addition to grouping, Facebook will have to deal with a multitude of "GroupOn clones", including transactions site LivingSocial, which announced an investment of 175 million of e-commerce giant Amazon.com end of last year.

Facebook will also face competition from Google, which, over the past two years, has been losing talent to the social networking giant. Just a month after was repulsed in an offer of redemption of Groupon, in January, Google confirmed that it is preparing to launch its own social-purchase competitor called Google offers.

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