Skift Take
Ctrip is anxious to expand globally and views the acquisition of Skyscanner as a means to expand Ctrip's international footprint in selling air tickets. Look for Skyscanner to increase its booking capabilities and to evolve beyond search under the Ctrip umbrella.
China's Ctrip, which is seeking to become more of a global player, announced it has an agreement to acquire Scotland-based flight-metasearch engine Skyscanner for $1.74 billion.
Skyscanner, which is also trying to build up its hotel metasearch business, had been rumored to be seeking to do an initial public offering but the acquisition by Ctrip, the second largest online travel agency in the world and the largest in China, obviously takes an IPO off the table. We reported earlier this year that Priceline Group took a look at buying the company late last year, before Skyscanner raised its latest round of funding which valued it at $1.6 billion.
Major investors in Skyscanner include Sequoia Capital, Yahoo Japan and Malaysian sovereign-wealth fund Khazanah Nasional Bhd.
Ctrip stated it w
