Type of site Electronic Commerce Commercial Yes | Owner Groupon Registration None | |
Slogan(s) Live your city for less! Website | ||
Groupon MyCityDeal is a collective buying power, deal-of-the-day website that is focused on bringing discounted price deals in the lifestyle and leisure sector to UK and European markets. Founded in Berlin as CityDeal in December 2009, the collective now serves Germany, France, Spain, Sweden, Austria, the Netherlands, United Kingdom, Italy, Ireland and Turkey. The service was acquired in May 2010 by Groupon, an operator of a similar service in the United States, and was co-branded under the Groupon name. The acquisition increased Groupon's operations in European markets.
Contents
Collective buying business model
Collective buying allows for direct cost savings, both for the consumer as well as the business. Consumers participating in on-line buying reap the benefits of discounted prices for restaurants, spas, attractions, hotels, etc., while organizations can save money by directly reaching target markets. Participating members further benefit through "networking opportunities and shared knowledge" which over time can build a tipping point of group purchasing power based on a growing number of active participants. 'MyCityDeal uses an assurance contract platform to ensure that retailers are able to offer quantity discounts through a viable sales platform. In doing so, users or consumers are protected from the free rider problem where individuals looking for a "free ride" ride the discounted savings of others who paid to bring the deal-of-the-day to the actualization threshold. Rather, users are only charged when the required number of people sign up.
In China, the model emerged as Tuangou, a system that allows individuals to connect on-line, then approach local vendors to negotiate a discount.
Funding
MyCityDeal is backed by two key investors, Germany's Holtzbrinck Ventures and Rocket Internet.