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Yelp, the go-to site for crowdsourced reviews on nearly every sort of consumer-focused business, is jumping into food delivery. The company said Tuesday that it paid $134 million for food ordering and delivery app Eat24.
Eat24, which has relationships with 20,000 restaurants in 1,500 US cities, is already integrated into Yelp’s network. That integration lets Yelp users see menus and order takeout directly from the site.
“For those of you who haven’t used the service, its mission is to keep you from having to cook, shop or wear pants,” Yelp CEO Jeremy Stoppelman wrote in a blog. “As a Yelp Platform partner, they’ve been a valuable driver of our growth in the restaurant category while continuing to build an impressive business of their own.”
The purchase puts Yelp in direct competition against GrubHub, which had one of the most successful initial public offerings last year. It also helps Yelp form new relationships with local restaurants, according to a note from RBC Capital analyst Mark Mahaney. Currently, businesses can buy advertising on Yelp to help them show up at the top of search results.
“As more food ordering transactions move online, further integrating Eat24 will enhance our user experience with an easy-to-use product and service that allows our large consumer audience to transact directly with businesses,” Stoppelman said in a statement.
Yelp’s investors appeared to like the transaction. Shares rose more than 6 percent.
