TechCrunch reports that Google is in negotiations to buy Yelp. Makes perfect sense. Google is ready to make an assault on local with its Place Pages and QR codes on local establishments and augmented maps and directions and mobile…. This turf was newspapers’ and phone companies’ to lose and lose it, they will.
Or as I put it in a tweet: “Yelp + GoogleMaps + StreetView + PlacePages + GOOG411 + Google Goggles + Android + AdSense = Google synchronicity”
[...] is Going Yelp TechCrunch: Google and Yelp are in advanced acquisition negotiations, confirmed by multiple sources; http://j.mp/8I905J [...]
It might be worth a glance at the more serious journalism that has been written abut Yelp. Jeff, has this story made it into your stream?
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/03/technology/start-ups/03yelp.html?pagewanted=all