How to reach fast-growing China online market
China’s current 400 million Internet users are increasingly buying online travel with US$13 billion in bookings expected by next year, according to PhoCusWright’s Emerging Online Travel Marketplace in China.
“Baidu commands about 70 percent of China’s search market, far more than its top challenger, Google, which has had well-documented troubles of its own lately. The Mountain View, California–based company made headlines late last year for its decision to stop censoring search results on the mainland, falling out of favor with the central authorities and casting doubt on the company’s future in China,” reported PhoCusWright.
Just as the overall Chinese search market experiences some important changes, travel metasearch is in a period of transition as well. China’s leading travel metasearch provider, Qunar.com, turned away potential buyers in 2009. Its competitor, Kuxun.com, was bought out last year by TripAdvisor, which had first made an offer for Qunar, says the site.
PhoCusWright is sponsoring the China Travel Distribution Summit on Sept. 15-16 in Beijing.
“As travel providers and foreign investors eye China, understanding and projecting the future of search in the country — what players will dominate, how they will do business, and how they will interact with travelers — is a key to navigating this dynamic market.," PhoCusWright says.
Speakers include Fritz Demopoulous, CEO, Qunar.com; Ivan Zhang, CEO, Kuxun.com; Wei Li, general manager, key account sales, Baidu; and Brett Henry, vice president, marketing, Abacus.
By David Wilkening
David
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