Group buying is one of the fastest growing trends in South Africa today. Industry leaders are confident the growth potential remains strong since group buying is location-specific. Start-up costs are low and profit room remains high, so many sites continue to receive invested money despite widespread criticism and Facebook’s decision to phase out of deal business due to privacy concerns. In the early stages of all industries, some companied fail because they cannot compete with stronger companies in difficult economic conditions. To deal with difficult conditions, an alarming number of businesses are developing group buying websites in places like China and India, so the increase of group buying in South Africa is nothing more than a natural progression into the international mainstream. The group buying concept is fairly new and consumers have accepted this concept because they can now make full use of the rich information available on the Internet. Group buying is convenient and easy so it works. Anyone can view a site, join a mailing list, subscribe to RSS or print out a coupon(优惠券). The current group buying structure offered by the industry leaders works although there are still challenges to overcome. Perhaps, the future of group buying is tied to the joining together of social media and mobile devices. Mobile devices are with us wherever we go and almost everyone is using some type of social media site like Facebook or Twitter to stay informed. Using GPS and social media technology to provide real time location-specific promotions would be beneficial to every consumer looking for the best deals in town. Pause for a moment and think about it! What is better than signing on to your phone while having fun in town and you receive a real time information that your favorite shop across the street is offering a killer dial? The future of the group buying in South Africa is bright and we can expect to see more advanced approaches to this concept in the future. In addition to the technological advances consumers will see the range of promotions expand to include new products and services. 小题1:What does the underlined phrase “phase out of” mean in the passage?
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