There are some big changes today in the world of coupons and cash back, with a double announcement – the relaunch of the cash-back app Shopmium, and the sale of Coupons.com.
They’re both connected, of course, as owner Quotient Technology has been signaling its intent to retire the Coupons.com website, app and name in favor of reintroducing Shopmium, which was last available in the U.S. several years ago. In the meantime, instead of fading into the sunset, Coupons.com will get a new lease on life under new ownership.
First, to the Coupons.com news. The European shopping recommendation and rewards company Global Savings Group (GSG) has announced its purchase of the Coupons.com brand and domain from Quotient Technology, and its intention to continue offering print-at-home and digital offers on the site.
“With this acquisition and thanks to our expertise and experience, we will be able to offer consumers and brand marketers outstanding benefits,” Johannes Wirth, CEO of the business unit GSG Connect, said in a statement. “We will continue to offer printable coupons while adding digital ones, saving tips, reviews and many more services that will empower consumers to make more confident and better shopping decisions while we are supporting retailers and brands to become more successful online.”
GSG already owns and operates several coupons and cash-back sites in Europe and Asia. Acquiring Coupons.com now gives it a major presence in the U.S.
The situation had been looking grim lately for the future of printable coupons, but today’s announcement means things are suddenly looking up for the format. Coupons.com’s transition to GSG has begun and is expected to be complete by the end of 2023. During and after that time, “Quotient will continue to partner with GSG to deliver print-at-home printable and digital coupons to consumers on the Coupons.com domain,” GSG explained.
The Coupons.com cash-back app is not a part of the transaction. Quotient has not yet said what will become of it, but it’s likely to be superseded by Shopmium, which officially (re)launched in the U.S. at the same time that the Coupons.com sale was announced.
Shopmium was founded in France in 2011 and acquired by Quotient in 2015. If you have hazy or no memories of it, it’s because Quotient operated the app for less than two years before folding many of its features into the Coupons.com app and retiring Shopmium altogether (while continuing to operate it in Europe). So Shopmium’s rebirth and the relinquishment of Coupons.com represents something of a reversal of priorities, as Coupons.com was considered the more valuable property back then, but now Quotient is betting on Shopmium.
“This exciting U.S. launch of Shopmium offers American consumers an interactive platform to discover products and earn cash back, while brands and retailers can grow their consumer relationships through new, revenue-driving touchpoints and powerful audience insights,” Quotient CEO Matt Krepsik said in a statement.
The original iteration of Shopmium had something of a rocky relationship with users, amid some clumsy and not-very-well-received attempts to forbid the combining of coupons and cash-back offers. That restriction has become more commonplace these days – even Ibotta is starting to do it now – so it’s likely less of a deal-breaker to potential users.
The app itself has a new and refreshed look as compared to its original version, but it works largely the same as the original Shopmium and the existing Coupons.com app – activate an offer, purchase the product, scan a receipt and a product bar code, and your cash back will be deposited into a linked PayPal account. Your cash will be deposited as you earn it, with no earnings threshold necessary before you can cash out.
The Shopmium announcement – together with the related Coupons.com announcement – “comes at a crucial time for American consumers as they are continuing to battle inflationary pressures,” Quotient said. “As higher prices threaten brand loyalty and force shoppers to rethink the products they buy, many consumers are seeking more control over how they save and shop.”
And now consumers will continue to have a choice – printable coupons, or cash back, as it appears the two will continue to peacefully coexist for some time to come.
The new Shopmium app is a major embarrassment. It looks like it’s a first beta not an official release, and is missing features like sorting offers by inactive (or any other way) as coupons.com has (so you can easily find newly released offers without scrolling through the entire list), searching offers, and linking store cards. Their categorization of offers is incomplete and often wrong, so you can’t count on using that. And it appears that they close offers before the expiration date for some unknown reason and without warning (maybe too many redemptions?), which is completely different from how coupons.com or Savingstar worked. Very disappointing. But given the level of support we’ve seen from coupons.com, not entire;y surprising.
Total BS. They suspended my account for submitting a legit receipt claiming suspicious activity
. Yet refuse to give me a specific incident that violates their rules or offer up another explanation. Coupons.com and all digital rebates are geared towards Walmart stores and will continue to monopolize shoppers behaviors. As far as helping with inflation, Walmart has done the opposite. Increasing prices of any and all products that have active coupons. Check your register price for every item. Shelf stickers are usually incorrect yet Walmart doesn’t care. If your not watching the checkout your getting ripped off. Guaranteed .
Yea, and now they won’t pay out for rebates I submitted, suspended my account, and refuse to give me a specific explanation how submitting a rebate for 2 Dickinson’s witch hazels for $8.00 rebate. I’ve repeatedly asked and all I get is the same generic response. Suspicious activity! What is f***ing suspicious about submitting a receipt with the items required. Digital coupons is the problem. They are unreliable, scamming, and suspect at best. I find 70% of the time they do not work, or get credited for any reason coupons.com can come up with. Ibotta isn’t any better either. Just one big plot to get you to a Walmart.
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