China's Ctrip Acquires UK Aggregator Travelfusion

China online travel leader Ctrip acquired UK-based Travelfusion, which aggregates content from low-cost and legacy airlines, hotel consolidators, and rail lines.

In so doing, Ctrip announced that it had completed a transaction in which it now holds a majority stake in the UK distribution company. Other terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.

“Travelfusion has built a great GDS (global distribution) system for LCCs globally,” said James Liang, Ctrip's CEO. “The strategic relationship we built with Travelfusion will further extend our leadership in China’s international travel market, and enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of our IT system by leveraging Travelfusion’s advanced technology. We are excited to work with Travelfusion’s team to create greater value for our customers.”

Travelfusion was founded 15 years ago and offers distribution services for both corporate travel agencies and suppliers.