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Hedge Fund Investment Pulls Zynga, Groupon Shares Out of the Weeds

Eric Johnson in News on May 15 at 9:56 am PT

Zynga and Groupon shares shot up 7 percent and 5 percent, respectively, on news of an investment from hedge fund Jana Partners, first reported by Reuters earlier this morning. The long-term picture of both companies’ stock prices has been less than rosy. After peaking in March 2012 at close to $15 per share, Zynga hasn’t risen above the $5 threshold in nearly a year. Meanwhile, Groupon has similarly remained below $10 per share in the same time frame, peaking shortly after its November IPO close to $26 per share.

News Byte

@WalmartLabs Goes Shopping, Comes Back With Two Startups

John Murrell in Commerce on May 14 at 11:35 am PT

@Walmart Labs, the tech arm of the retail giant’s e-commerce unit, announced a pair of acquisitions today. Now on board are OneOps, which brings its platform-as-a-service technology, and social-software outfit Tasty Labs, along with its founders, Mozilla vet Nick Nguyen, del.icio.us creator Joshua Schachter and HousingMaps creator Paul Rademacher.

News Byte

PayPal Offers Stores a Trade-In Deal for Their Old Cash Registers

John Murrell in Commerce on May 14 at 9:44 am PT

Aiming to increase its presence at retail checkouts, PayPal today announced a Cash for Registers offer. Beginning next month, the company will provide free credit, debit card, check, and, of course, PayPal processing for the remainder of the year to any qualifying business that chucks its old cash register for a PayPal Here system, comprising an iPad, card reader, iPad stand, cash drawer and printer. Partners including ShopKeep, Vend, Erply and NCR Silver will offer various solutions tailored for different markets. Registration is now open.