Groupon doesn't want people to know exactly how many deals it sells any more: the daily deal site has changed its policies so that the number of times each deal is purchased no longer shows up on their website. Instead, a number that is a random percentage (between .5% and 19.5%) lower than the actual number purchased will appear.
Why make the change? It's because they're worried you think they're fat: spokeswoman Julie Mossler writes on the company blog, "some clever people are using the counter to make (consistently incorrect) estimates of our total company sales, which we don't like for the same reason you probably wouldn't like if people tried to guess your weight all day." (It probably has much more to do with press speculation during the mandated quiet period leading up to their IPO.) Whatever it takes to keep the Groupon love alive.
· About the Deal Counter [Groupon]
· Groupon Undercounts Number of Times Deal Is Purchased [Chicago Tribune]
· All Groupon Coverage on Eater [-E-]