Groupon Grapple

Online coupon king Groupon may find itself financially dethroned by competitors offering retailers and other merchants better deals. According to a Wall Street Journal article, each time Groupon sells a voucher, it gets paid up front and the merchant's share is paid in installments over 60 days. Rival LivingSocial pays the full amount in 15 days and Google's upcoming daily deal service is supposed to pay most of what the merchant is owed in four days. No doubt other services will pop up and offer better deals to retailers.