Google promoted a Groupon-like daily deals offer on its home page for the first time on Wednesday, a rare instance of the Internet giant using its prized online real estate for advertising.
The world’s No.1 Web-search engine launched a daily deals business in certain cities this year — called Google Offers — to try and counter Groupon‘s increasing draw for Web surfers. Wednesday’s daily deal was the first time a Google Offers product has been promoted on its minimalist website, and may signal an escalation of competition with Groupon — which has filed for an IPO, that sources say could happen as soon as next month.
Mike Blake / Reuters
The pair are vying for advertising dollars from local businesses, such as restaurants and retail stores.
A short blurb beneath Google’s sparse home page — a valued window into a plethora of services from email to maps — offered visitors $25 tickets to New York’s American Museum of Natural History for the discounted price of $5.
“We occasionally include a link on the Google homepage that points users to important information, whether it be about a relevant cause, a new product or an offer,” a Google spokeswoman said in a statement emailed to Reuters. ”Users can benefit from learning about great deals from local organizations.”
Google has traditionally resisted using its homepage for promotions, save for occasionally pushing in-house products such as its Chrome Web browser or its now-defunct Nexus S phone.
Google generated 96 percent of its roughly $29 billion in revenue last year from advertising. Most of it comes from ads that appear alongside Google’s search results.
Reuters
