Articles tagged “skyscanner”

As CEO Gareth Williams says, the Ctrip deal means that nothing and everything changes for Skyscanner. The focus of the business and the growth plans will remain in place but getting a wealthy new owner from the world's fastest-growing travel market will bring a multitude of new opportunities.

In its short history, Skift has talked about the balance of power in travel heading East, whether it is the influence of Chinese travelers, the rise of Ctrip and Alibaba, or the emergence of the Gulf carriers with their luxury long-haul flights. Ctrip's acquisition of Skyscanner is one of those moments that mattered in 2016 and Ctrip's global ambitions are a manifestation of what we have been talking about.

Ctrip didn't acquire the largest metasearch engine in Skyscanner but one that is very strong in Europe. Ctrip will now turn Skyscanner into a flight-booking site and will also focus Ctrip on growing domestically, in greater China and Southeast Asia first.

Ctrip’s acquisition of Skyscanner marks the next phase of consolidation in the metasearch industry. The premium valuation paid by Ctrip is well-timed for Expedia’s pending Trivago IPO.

Whether Ctrip overpaid or underpaid is irrelevant. They needed a meta site to position itself as a global player in online travel. The implications for the future of search and travel are huge.

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.

Slim margins and complex technology have turned travel metasearch into a contact sport. Identifying the winners and losers in this space takes a keen understanding of the economics and mechanics that power these businesses. Luckily, we've produced the definitive resource for understanding and forecasting the trend lines.

While Skyscanner mulls an IPO and other European travel companies and startups attracted venture capital funding in 2016, things might be trending downward. Investors will likely be more timid in 2017 as European travel brands confront challenges wrought by Brexit, terrorism and local economies.

With the threat of direct booking, the constant spending by traditional online travel agencies, and the move to mobile, metasearch has been forced to rethink its role in the booking funnel.

Though bots still aren't completely frictionless and can't think like a human (yet), they certainly offer a way for consumers to have a conversation with a brand during the booking process that wasn't possible before. And it is potentially a very cheap channel for the brands.