Marriott & Alibaba partner to run travel site 阿里巴巴与万豪国际成立合资公司
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Marriott International is joining hands with Alibaba.
The American hotel giant said Monday it has formed a joint venture with Alibaba Group Holding to sell online travel bookings and loyalty program deals in China, an expansion tactic to draw more customers in the booming Asian market.
In the deal, Marriott will expand the number of its properties available - including the flagship brand, Ritz-Carlton and W Hotels - for booking on Alibaba's online travel booking site, Fliggy.
The Marriott-Alibaba joint venture also will run Marriott's "storefront" portion on Fliggy and allow Chinese customers to sign up for Marriott's loyalty programs. The newly revamped site also will display and pitch promotions and services, such as breakfasts and group tours, that are customized for Chinese travelers, particularly at Marriott hotels.
With China's middle-class earning higher wages and traveling in great numbers, international travel companies have been aggressively pouring investment and developing hotels in the country in hopes of instilling brand loyalty. As domestic travelers rack up mileage and increasingly go abroad, Marriott and Alibaba are banking on greater demand for higher-quality hotels and better online booking experience. China’s travelers will make about 700 million trips in the next five years, Marriott estimates.
More specifically, the joint venture plans to make it easier for travelers to buy shopping, dining and sightseeing deals as they book flights and hotels on Fliggy.
Alibaba Group CEO Mr. Zhang Yong
Marriott also will try to sell some selected events, such as concerts, court-side seats at games and other family events offered at its Marriott and Starwood loyalty programs.
Alibaba's online payment service, Alipay, will be accepted at Marriott hotels in some countries.
阿里巴巴与万豪国际成立合资公司
2017年8月7日，阿里巴巴集团与万豪国际联合宣布达成全面战略合作：双方将成立合资公司，全面运营万豪旗下所有线上中文官方平台，包含万豪中文官方网站，万豪无线端中文app，飞猪万豪官方旗舰店等。同时，万豪集团旗下会员体系也将与阿里巴巴的“88会员”体系全面打通。
此次合作将使阿里巴巴和万豪国际打通线上线下，建立长期可持续伙伴关系，并使飞猪和万豪成为中国出境游用户的首选平台。在充分运用双方数据积累的基础上，合资公司将全面接管并运营万豪集团旗下所有线上中文官方渠道，借助阿里巴巴生态中超过5亿庞大活跃用户基础及大数据能力，帮助万豪探索酒店运营新模式。未来有望为更多酒店集团提供服务。
此外，万豪旗下“万豪礼赏奖励计划”、丽思卡尔顿奖赏计划、SPG（喜达屋优先顾客计划）将与阿里巴巴“88会员”体系实现全面互通。淘气值分别大于2500或1000的阿里巴巴“88会员”可以直接申请成为万豪金卡会员或银卡会员。同时，万豪酒店的私人音乐会、家庭体验以及NBA中国等其他令人激动的体育赛事的专场专座，都会与阿里巴巴“88会员”互通和开放。
就在7月份举办的网商大会上，阿里巴巴集团董事局主席马云提出“全球买、全球卖、全球付、全球运、全球游”五个小目标，首次把全球游加入到“五新”战略的阐述中。与万豪国际的合作模式，将成为阿里巴巴全球游的落地和开启。