Hotels.com aims to win in the Apps space
With the battle heating up on the mobile front, WIT asks Christelle Chan, Global Mobile Director of Hotels.com, what she's doing to adapt the business model to changing customer behaviour. Q: How is mobile changing customer behaviour on hotels.com – any discernible differences between customer [...]
A triple take on the year ahead for hotels
Grahame Tate, Managing Directors, IDeaS Asia PacificQ: What are the three things you think will happen in the hotel space in 2013?• A flattening of demand or at best a slower increase than in 2012 • More brand consolidation • A broader realization that OTA’s cannibalize each other and the ho [...]
No intention to mislead in website pricing, says AirAsia X CEO
Malaysia based low cost carrier, AirAsia, which was fined by the Federal Court in Melbourne, Australia for not including taxes and charges in advertised air fares on its website, airasia.com, stated it did not intend to mislead its customers.Azran Osman-Rani, CEO of AirAsia X, was responding to new [...]
What our panel of experts think will happen in 2013
One common prediction is the world will not end on December 21, and we still be around to do business in the new year.Michael Issenberg, Chairman, Accor Asia Pacific• First there is a 2013 as the world doesn't end on 21/12/12.• The hype of Myanmar tourism and outrage over hotel pricing reache [...]
Tokyo takes top spot for best taxi service, cleanest and safest streets
A survey by TripAdvisor among 40 key tourist cities worldwide found Tokyo with the best taxi services and local public transport, as well as having the cleanest and safest streets.Singapore came in second for both categories.As for the friendliest taxi drivers both cities scored, with Tokyo in [...]
Why this time of the year is like prepping for an F1 race
You can tell it’s the merry time of the year because there’s a lot of buying going on – Priceline buys Kayak; MakeMyTrip buys Hoteltravel; ZUJI’s suitor turned out to be Webjet and not Wotif as the rumour mill had been suggesting; Etihad saves Kingfisher; and SIA sells its stake in Virgin At [...]
The Wrap: MAS flies down memory lane with retro aircraft, set to join Oneworld
In the news: Malaysia Airlines showcases aircraft in its original livery to celebrate 40 years of service, Beiiing airport passengers want more mobile self service, Scoot adopts ATI CloudMAS flies down memory lane with retro aircraft, set to join OneworldOn the auspicious date of 12.12.12, to comme [...]
A mixed outlook for 2013 but watch the rise of the affluent in China
So assuming we all live past December 21, 2012, the big question on everyone’s lips is, what will 2013 be like?It’d be a no-brainer to say “mixed” because that’d cover all eventualities. It’d also be no surprise to hear the word “cautious”.Pictured right: Shangri-La’s Rasa Sentosa [...]
Predictions for China 2013: Part 1
Trends to watch out for in this rising Asian dragon in the new year.• Cui Guangfu, CEO, eLongQ: What are the three things you think will happen in the travel distribution, marketing and technology space in China in 2013?Mobile will become ever more important.Difficulty in increasing PC traffic d [...]
Flocations raises S$700,000 funding, aims to integrate hotels and flights in one price
Two years after it made its debut at the WIT Bootcamp in Singapore, coming in second at the WIT Start-Up Pitch in 2010, travel discovery tool Flocations has closed a pre-series round of funding, raising S$700,000 led by TNF Ventures.The investment is supported with additional capital from SingTel [...]
