Deal-buying sites enter new era of e-commerce

[SINGAPORE] When US- based Groupon bought the homegrown Beeconomic deal-buying site a few years back for the reported sum of US$24 million, deal-buying sites were all the rage.

Deal-buying sites - which generally feature daily "deals" (heavily discounted products and services) - burst onto the local scene with much fervour following the local arm of Groupon's trajectory to riches.

Now, four years on, most of these deal-buying sites have folded, unable to compete with the larger market players. Meanwhile, the ones that survived are reaching a new chapter in their corporate story as they begin to align and move towards an e-commerce approach with a wider selection of goods and services, and a shift in product focus.