*McDonald's Makes Online Investment
McDonald's Corp., the world's largest restaurant chain said yesterday it has bought an unspecified equity stake in Food.com, an online takeout and delivery service that aims for food-portal status.It was unclear how McDonald's investment in Food.com would affect the Internet site's offerings or McDonalds.
Mike Gordon, vice president of communication at McDonald's Oak Brook, IL, headquarters was more clear about what the Food.com deal was not.
"[This] investment is not about hamburger delivery," said Gordon. "That's really not what our involvement with Food.com is all about.
"We think that there is a much broader application down the road and we're at the very first stages of investigating with them … what those opportunities may be in Internet commerce."
Gordon refused to speculate further beyond saying that the Food.com investment fit in with McDonald's goal "to touch everyone, everyday, everywhere." The chain has over 13,000 restaurants in the U. S. and 26,000-plus around the world.
