Ctrip Buys Trip.com for Skyscanner to Enhance Local Recommendations
Photo Credit: Trip's pace of user acquisition increased after it launched Tribes, a questionnaire-style filter that lets users sort results by up to 13 interests, such as foodie” or local culture. Backpackers likewise have a tribe. Trip.com
Skift Take
Ctrip-backed Skyscanner will tap in-destination content from social reviews company Trip.com. But is the acquiring company's true plan to further mobile engagement? Or is it to nab a domain name that may be appeal more to Americans than Ctrip.com -- or Alibaba's Fliggy?
China's largest online travel agency, Ctrip, has acquired Trip.com, the travel recommendation service founded and led by Travis Katz.
Originally called Gogobot, neither Trip.com nor Ctrip would disclose the terms of the deal. The Palo Alto,-based startup had raised $39 million in funding, said the company. Expedia's HomeAway, Redpoint and Battery Ventures were among the investors in the startup, which was founded in 2010.
Travis Katz, CEO and founder of Trip.com, said, “The idea of this deal is for Skyscanner to marry in-destination reviews content in Trip.com’s arsenal to Skyscanner’s platform.”
"The aspiration is not to only add static details,
