Hotels.com managing director Bill Edward (left) and Asia-Pacific director William Lau (right) with Mike Rowse (centre), director-general of Invest Hong Kong, at the opening in Hong Kong of the US firm’s regional hub

Hong Kong's excellent and affordable infrastructure, particularly in the area of telecommunications, was a decisive factor, managing director (Asia-Pacific) Bill Edward said.

"The free and business-friendly economy, the ideal geographical location with easy access to China and the skilled workforce were also crucial to locating our regional headquarters here," he said.

 Hotels.com will use the new office in Hong Kong as its hub, developing regional hotel products, expanding its Asia-Pacific distribution and affiliate network, and offering dedicated customer support services.

Referring to the company's development plan, Mr Edward said: "We aim to attract inbound traffic into the region from our main markets in the US and Europe, increase intra-regional traffic within Asia, and tap into the vast potential of outbound travel from Asia. There is also potential for development of local language websites.

"We plan to expand our current workforce and add some local staff to our Hong Kong operations."

Hotels.com offers discount rooms in more than 7,700 premiere properties in over 325 major destinations in North America, the Caribbean, Europe and Asia.

The company employs over 1,200 staff worldwide, with its corporate headquarters based in Dallas, Texas.

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Hotels.com www.Hotels.com