Chinese Online Booking Giant Ctrip Readies Itself for Global Expansion
Skift Take
Like Chinese travelers, Ctrip is breaking out of its domestic shell and looking to become much more of an international player. There is vast potential for Ctrip still to take advantage of in China and then there is a whole wide world out there too as it begins to service customers outside of China. But can the company tackle both ambitions simultaneously? Ctrip has great partners -- 16,000 of them, actually -- to assist but the partners may also turn out to be formidable competitors, as well.
China's largest online travel player, Ctrip, wants to get more global so it can serve travelers outside of China while domestically it is taking profits from high-end hotel-room sales and investing them into subsidizing the rates at lower- and mid-priced hotels to ward off competitors.
Ctrip officials provided details about these strategy shifts during the company's second quarter earnings call Thursday morning in Shanghai.
Ctrip posted a net loss of $78 million in the second quarter of 2016 compared with net income of $23 million a year earlier. Revenue grew 75 percent to $664 million. Both figures reflected Ctrip's substantial investment into rival Qunar and the consolidation of the latter's results as of the end of last year.
Priceline Group, Expedia and Ctrip Second Quarter Results
Gross Bookings
% Change
Revenue
% Change
Net Income
% Change
Priceline Group
$17.9B
19%
$2.55B
12.10%
$580.6M
12%
Expedia Inc.
$18.86B
25%
$2.19B
33%
$31.6M
(-61%)
