Google Might Buy eBay & PayPal
Written by Michael Levanduski
March 18, 2014 # 11:32 am # Marketing Insights, Specials # No Comments
It is no secret that Google has long been trying (and largely failing) at building a stronger e-commerce and online payments platform. With unpopular options like the Google Wallet in their past, they are undoubtedly still itching to get a strong footing in this incredibly profitable industry. Rather than make another attempt at creating a digital marketplace and payment platform, many people believe Google will put some of their Billions in cash to work, and purchase their way to the top.
A financial analyst, Colin Sebastian, has recently commented that if Google were to acquire eBay, they could immediately find themselves moved from the bottom of the pack in this area to the top. eBay owns PayPal as well, so this would really give Google two incredible properties for one purchase.
The question, of course, would be how much this would cost Google. There has been some talk of eBay operating PayPal as an entirely separate company, as well as other corporate changes, to they may be more open to a buyout than some people would expect. While eBay and PayPal are certainly ‘household names,’ that doesn’t mean that they are out of reach for the deep pockets of Google.
Sebastian commented that, “With Carl Icahn recasting public debate around the ownership of PayPal, and the integration of commerce and payments more broadly, we believe on potential ‘home run’ opportunity missing from the discourse is a combination of Google with eBay/PayPal.” This, of course, is what has sparked a lot of rumors and other discussions about this being a possibility.
Google’s Chief Executive, Larry Page, has long been open to big deals that would benefit the company. Their major purchase of YouTube several years ago has been extremely beneficial for both companies, and a eBay/PayPal acquisition could be even bigger.
Google and eBay are both in a position where they need to do something in order to ensure they don’t get pushed aside by other major players like Amazon and Apple, both of which have stronger e-commerce marketplaces and huge customer bases.
