Google still in the race to buy Waze, Facebook backs off

Waze is no longer a possible purchase for Facebook, but Google has remained in the race to acquire the company, according to a recent report.
You probably remember that Google and Facebook were fighting to buy the community-driven navigation app Waze. Well, it now seems that Facebook has decided to pass, leaving Google as the main contender.

According to All Things D, quoting sources familiar with the matter, Facebook has decided to quit the talks, the reason being that the two parties could not agree whether the Waze team would leave its native country of Israel, where it is currently headquartered, to move to Facebook's Californian base of operations.
Facebook would have probably been the one that needed Waze the most, since its main competitor in the acquisition of the service, Google, already has a mapping service, Google Maps. Still, Google Maps could profit quite a bit from integrating Waze's social features into its services.
Apple, which is also said to have been interested, also has its own mapping service. However, talking at the D11 conference (the same event where he said the Android market share didn’t worry him), Apple CEO Tim Cook has denied ever making an offer for Waze.
Google remains in the race and is said to offer $1 billion, while Facebook's offer was at $800 million. ZDNet says that Apple's offer, made earlier this year, was $400 million (or it wasn't, since Tim Cook says that no offer has been made).
The same source says, quoting local social media expert Yotam Tavor, that Google wouldn't have a problem with Waze employees remaining in Israel, since it already has a consistent operation in the country, which could easily integrate them.
Waze, which was said to also be contemplating the idea of an IPO, declined to comment on a possible deal, but has updated its app today, including Facebook events integration, among other things.
Do you think Waze would be a useful acquisition for Google?

Source:All Things DZDNet

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