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Technology Stocks : Groupon, Inc.

GRPN 18.55

-1.7%

Nov 11 3:59 PM EST

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To: Glenn Petersen who wrote (97)	8/27/2011 12:33:46 PM
From: Elmer Flugum	Read Replies (1) of 480

Groupon's CEO Lashes Out At Critics Ahead Of IPO investors.com "Groupon CEO Andrew Mason, lashing out at what he called "insane" and "hilarious" criticism in the media, defended the daily-deals website's record and growth strategy in a lengthy memo to employees on Thursday. Glimmers of frustration showed in a humor-laced three-page memo. Mason, whose company is speeding toward an IPO that sources pin around September, defended the use of a controversial accounting metric that was eventually dropped, and dismissed concerns about competition from the likes of Google ( GOOG) and Facebook. Mason revealed that U.S. revenue should jump about 12% in August from July, while marketing expenses are expected to slide 20%. "While we've bitten our tongues and allowed insane accusations . .. to go unchallenged publicly, it's important to me that you have the context necessary to brush this stuff off," Mason addressed employees in his memo. Mason argued that rival services were "small and not growing" and waved off accusations Groupon was "buying customers" by splurging on marketing — two key concerns on Wall Street ahead of its market debut. "Even if we wanted to continue to spend at these levels, we would eventually run out of new subscribers to acquire," he wrote. "The real point is that our business is a lot harder to build than people realize and our scale creates competitive advantages that even the largest technology companies are having trouble penetrating." Groupon's IPO plans had been dented by a stock market slump and financial disclosures that suggest the daily-deal company's business is slowing in North America."

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