Google has acquired Bump, a start-up whose app lets users transfer files between smartphones by tapping them together.

As The Wall Street Journal reports, local file transfers between phones is a recent focus among smartphone giants. While Google's Android mobile software allows for built-in local file-sharing, it needs near-field communication, which is lacking in many phones.

The newspaper speculated that Google may be moving to head off rival Apple, which is set to release its own file-sharing software, AirDrop, as part of its pending iOS 7 release.

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