According to Bloomberg News, Internet giant Google is now considering placing a bid on Israeli startup, Waze – a mapping app for smartphones. This news comes amidst reports of social media giant Facebook wanting to purchase the startup for a figure upwards of $1 billion (R9,5 billion) earlier this month. Facebook has thrown a spanner in the works, requesting the startup move to California. A request that Waze co-founders are not keen about. Google’s move to bid puts Facebook on a “collision course” with Google.
Ina Fried from “all Things Dis” said:
Most recently, Facebook has been all smiles when it comes to its relationship with Google and its Android mobile operating system, despite many years of significant tensions between them over a range of important issues that all essentially boil down to controlling the consumer experience on the Web.
But, acquiring a popular mapping product — one popular enough to have attracted Google’s interest in the past — could give Facebook some leverage against the search giant.
Google’s reasoning to bid for the startup, apart from the fact that Facebook would then not have their hands on the startup, could improve Google Maps and make it more popular.
Waze is of course sitting pretty with huge, very wealthy companies wanting in on their piece of pie. Bloomberg News also reported that the startup may even just take another round of investments.
[Source: Business Insider]
