Sina to acquire online travel company in China
( 2003-12-10 16:48) (Agencies)
Sina Corporation announced recently that it has entered into a definitive
agreement to acquire Fortune Trip, an online hotel booking company based in
Shanghai.
After the acquisition, Sina expects Fortune Trip to become a cornerstone of
its expanded effort into E- Commerce.
In the past five years, China has seen a rapid growth in its economy. Along
with this growth, its travel industry has expanded dramatically experiencing a
12.9% compounded annual growth from 1998 through 2002. According to data from
the China National Tourism Administration, the total tourism expenditure in
China was roughly 388 billion yuan (US$47 billion) in 2002. Simultaneously, with
a rapidly expanding Internet population in China reaching 68 million users as of
June 2003, according to CNNIC, an ever increasing amount of hotel information
and booking are being researched and conducted over the Internet.
Fortune Trip is an online hotel booking company established in November 2001.
It currently has over 130 employees with main operation based in Shanghai along
with in-field sales and marketing personnel operating in several major
metropolitan areas including Beijing, Shanghai and cities in Zhejiang and
Guangdong provinces. Fortune Trip has a national coverage with over 1,000 hotels
in its hotel network.
The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions including
regulatory approvals and is expected to be completed in the first quarter of
2004.
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