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| Sky's the limit for online travel, airlines predict ( 09/12/2002 ) | |||||||||
The travel portal Zuji has already launched sites in Australia and Singapore. Further sites are planned for Korea and the remaining ASEAN countries. Zuji's executive chairman Tim Fitzsimmons says the company expects Hong Kong to be the third biggest market after Australia and Thailand. Travel market research firm Phocus Wright predicts the market for online travel in the Asia-Pacific, excluding Japan, will almost triple in the next two years. It estimates the market is currently worth HK$21 billion (US$2.7 billion), growing to HK$62 billion (US$8 billion) in 2004. Mr Fitzsimmons, who is also Cathay Pacific's general manager for e-business and regions, said Zuji represented a particularly good investment opportunity for the airline. "Asia has the highest growth rate in travel in the world," he added. Zuji's commercial director Martin Symes says: "Online travel in Asia is set to take off." He predicts that in the future 60 per cent of air travel products will be bought on the Internet. The Hong Kong site is Zuji's first dual language site, with English and traditional Chinese. He said Zuji had used Cathay Pacific's experience in localising the site for the Hong Kong market. In Hong Kong, Zuji will face competition from US portal Priceline, which operates a name-your-own-price model site in Hong Kong. Mr Symes said: "The market in Asia is big enough for both of us." (Read Cut price travel takes off from Hong Kong) Furthermore, Mr Fitzsimmons says Priceline's business model does not allow customers to choose which airline they are flying on or which route they are taking. He said: "Cathay's customers do want to know they're on Cathay and want to know their routing." Zuji is also planning to move into the China market in the near future. Mr Symes said they will be looking for partners to help them enter the mainland. Related links: | |||||||||
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