An employee answers phone calls at the switchboard of the Google office in Zurich August 18, 2009.
Facebook is purchasing WhatsApp for $19 billion, but at least one other big tech firm was also vying for the mobile-messaging service’s attention: Google.
Fortune’s Jessi Hempel, citing unnamed sources, reports that Google made a $10 billion bid to buy WhatsApp. Google declined to comment.
In addition to the considerably higher purchase price from Facebook, a key difference between the two offers is that Facebook’s came with the promise of a seat on its board.
[FORTUNE]