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eMoney News

Google to enter loyalty card market?
12 Jul 2011

Google could be the latest contender in the loyalty card market, after it acquired start-up Punchd.

Rumours about a potential takeover emerged last week, but they were quickly quashed.
However, Punchd has now confirmed the sale to the search giant in a blog post.

"We're excited to announce that Punchd has been acquired by Google! We'll be joining Google's Mountain View teams, just down the street from our offices at 500 Startups, to improve how businesses and customers interact," it said.

When Punchd users buy something from a partner store using their loyalty card, they have to scan a code with their smartphone, which will then alert users when they are eligible to receive a reward.

Google is reportedly planning to launch a new offers service, to rival Groupon, and experts believe its latest acquisition will be integrated well into this.

Business development manager Hannah Bowden, who authored the recent Local Loyalty report, said loyalty schemes could be very useful for firms hoping to compete with larger retailers on a local scale.