Top Stories
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Do Hailo and Uber taxi e-hail apps defy a NYC judge’s orders? Nobody knows
TransportNew York City’s much-anticipated e-hail app program was cut short by a temporary restraining order (TRO) just days after launch, but that hasn’t halted the operations of the two startups that were already approved for participation. Hailo and Uber‘s cab drivers continue to pick up passengers via the companies’ mobile e-hail apps every day. Why do they [...]
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Travel information brand Skift raises an additional $1.1 million in seed funding
DigitalNine months ago when Skift launched, we promised a smarter worldview on travel, with a mix of news, information, and data services for professionals in the travel industry and professional travelers. Since then we have grown very fast, and Skift is now among the top sites in the travel industry. To accelerate our growth, we [...]
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Car sharing startup RelayRides acquires Wheelz for its unlocking technology
TransportWith a still small, but growing, market around people that want to rent out their personal cars to their neighbors, some consolidation seemed inevitable. On Tuesday startup RelayRides, which was one of the first companies to jump into the neighborhood car sharing market, announced that it has acquired Wheelz, a startup that had originally focused [...]
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Five travel startups that pave the way to smarter trip planning
DigitalTrip planning can begin as soon as the idea of destination starts to sprout inside the traveler’s mind. It involves not only booking a hotel or flight, but researching activities, weather, and culture. This week’s SkiftSeedlings looks at five travel startups that contribute to the inspiration and planning phases of a journey, whether it be [...]
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Airbnb CEO interview: No room for anonymity in sharing economy
DigitalIn the wake of Airbnb moving to a Verified ID system to enhance trust between hosts and prospective guests, NBCNews.com’s Ben Popken spoke with Airbnb co-founder and CEO Brian Chesky about trust and security, and what the new feature means for the evolution of Airbnb. Skift reprints the interview with permission. NBC NEWS: How does anonymity [...]
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Great for global travelers: Mobile messaging apps overtaking text messages
DigitalWhatsAp is one of Silicon Valley’s most buzzed-about companies, yet it actively avoids the spotlight, operating out of a small office in Mountain View, Calif., with no sign on the building entrance or on the office door. Unlike most start-ups eager for media attention, WhatsApp Inc. says it doesn’t want or need it. Its popular mobile [...]
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Bus service with Wi-Fi takes hold as alternative transportation for many
DigitalIt’s almost noon on a spring Friday, and the oldish fellow on the bus seat next to me is furiously working on a math problem the old school way — on paper. He’s oblivious to the activity around him: across the aisle, a young woman not always using her headphones is watching a movie on [...]
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Yahoo acquires MileWise flight-search service and shuts it down
TransportMileWise announced today that its “team will be joining Yahoo,” and that the MileWise service, which showed flight options based on your reward mileage, will be shutting down. It’s been tough going for mileage-tracking services such as MileWise and TripIt, to name a few, as four major U.S. airlines — Southwest, United, American and Delta [...]
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Priceline purchase of Kayak approved by UK, deal to close May 21
DigitalThe nail-biting is over. The last major hurdle to Priceline’s $1.8 billion of Kayak was removed when the UK’s Office of Fair Trading today announced that it cleared the merger after conducting a regulatory review. The transaction is slated to close May 21. The merger had initially been slated to close during the first quarter [...]
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Does anyone really need another flight-search startup?
TransportHere’s some unsolicited advice for entrepreneurs: If you want to launch a travel startup, avoid building a flight-search startup, and focus on hotels or something else. OK, the hotel sector is over-crowded, too, but you’ll have more of a chance of surviving than trying to subsist on flight commissions (they only exist for huge OTAs [...]
