Google acquires Zagat

Many of you are probably familiar with Zagat's pocket-sized guides to restaurants with ratings and reviews, many of which were provided by friends and users of the service. Zagat today provides users with ratings on "places to eat, shop, stay and play" according to Google, which announced that it has acquired the 32 year old company. Zagat provides ratings for 13 categories in 100 cities and with the purchase, all of that information will probably be made easily accessible by the Mountain View based firm. You now might find Zagat ratings in Google Maps, Google Places, Hotpot and more.

While no purchase price was disclosed, Zagat had previously put it self up for sale with a $200 million price tag. As for Zagat, the company called itself a "pioneer in user-generated content" acquired by another "renowned innovator" in Google. We can see the upside here to Google as the purchase will bring many Zagat fans who trust the brand, into Google's sticky web which should translate into more cash in the company's coffers.

source: Google, Zagat via AndroidCentral