Here comes IVI to liberate revenue managers: Infinito launches a virtual assistant
After nearly a decade working with revenue management companies including IDeaS and most recently, LodgIQ, Fabian Bartnick (pictured above) has decided to launch his first startup to “liberate revenue managers”.
Infinito aims to do this via IVI, a virtual RM analyst and assistant “who will [...]
Is Agoda’s “Mix and Save” clever or risky or could it create operational nightmares for hoteliers?
While Agoda is hailing its new feature “Mix and Save” as a breakthrough for extra budget-conscious travellers, hoteliers are still coming to grips with what it really means for them down the line.
The Thailand-based travel platform announced the new feature which it said would allow customer [...]
Excuse me, is that champagne real? Designing with VR and accelerating startups all part of KrisLab’s new playbook
The first thing I reached out for in the
cabin was the champagne. Even though it wasn’t real, it felt like the thing to
do when one is flying in a space that’s decked out to look more like a Japanese
onsen with soft steam billowing all around than the kind of prosaic cabin I am
more used to.
[...]
Will Asia be the breakout region for Tours & Activities?
As the Arival team prepared for our launch event in Asia Pacific to serve creators and sellers of tours, activities and attractions, we heard one refrain again and again from industry insiders: Asia is behind. Tour and activity operators are resistant to new technology. Attractions are hesitant to [...]
The Wrap: Malaysia launches visit year campaign, eyes 30 million tourist arrivals
News Roundup: This week’s focus is on Malaysia – the unveiling of the Visit Malaysia 2020 logo to mark the start of the country’s tourism campaign, and Malaysia Airlines’ partnership with TUI to launch a new travel marketplace amid news of its possible sale surfacing again.
Destination: [...]
Travix sees strong growth in the Philippines as it expands CheapTickets, BudgetAir in Asia
As travellers in the Philippines get smarter and savvier about online travel, they are starting to shift from direct to indirect, said Richard Kua, regional director Asia Pacific for Amsterdam-based Travix which runs CheapTickets as well as BudgetAir in the region.
“They see a
$200 flight on [...]
3 insights from Google study to help travel brands in APAC shape marketing strategy
The Asia Pacific region will account for more than 40% of global online travel sales by 2020, surpassing North America (27.6%) and Western Europe (20.2%) according to the report, Distribution of digital travel sales worldwide from 2014 to 2020, by region, by German online portal Statista.
Travel [...]
Asian travellers most keen on going cashless, China largest market for B2C ecommerce
Asian travellers are most keen to go cashless and adopt alternative forms of payment, according to Amadeus’ Travel Payments Guide 2019, a new report charting the rise of alternative payment methods.
According to the report, alternative ways to pay for travel, such as e-Wallets and bank trans [...]
In a world where funding knows no boundaries, think global from day one, startups urged
The good news is, there is more money around and at the early stage, it’s a good time for all startups. The bad news is, at the late stage, money is chasing fewer startups.
“Companies can come in early with traction these days. That’s when investors pile in. But at the late stage, competi [...]
Traveloka launches Xperience in bid to be travel and lifestyle platform
In its bid to become a travel and lifestyle platform – it does not like the term “superapp”, I was told by Traveloka executives – the Indonesian-based OTA has launched Traveloka Xperience for consumers to discover travel and lifestyle activities.
Christian Suwarna, senior vice presiden [...]
