Travel Technology
prnewswire | July 21, 2023
Wego, the largest online travel marketplace in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), invites travelers to discover Azerbaijan in all seasons.
The two companies will join forces for a new campaign aiming to showcase Azerbaijan's incredible attractions to MENA travelers. Building on the successful previous partnership, this collaboration will leverage Wego's extensive reach and innovative marketing strategies to showcase Azerbaijan's rich cultural heritage, diverse landscapes, and warm hospitality.
In Azerbaijan, both summer and winter offer a wide range of exciting activities for each type of traveler.
Mamoun Hmedan, Chief Commercial Officer and Managing Director, MENA and India, Wego, said: "As we renew our partnership with Azerbaijan Tourism Board, we aim to inspire and guide travelers to explore the wonders of Azerbaijan and create a seamless and inspiring travel experience. We recorded over 830,000 searches globally to Azerbaijan this year and we are expecting to see an increase in the searches towards the summer."
During the summer months, the country's beautiful coastal areas become a haven for beach lovers. Travelers can indulge in water sports such as jet skiing and parasailing. Additionally, the picturesque mountainous regions of Azerbaijan, such as the Greater Caucasus range, provide fantastic opportunities for hiking, trekking, and exploring scenic trails that lead to breathtaking vistas and hidden waterfalls.
Florian Sengstschmid, CEO, Azerbaijan Tourism Board, said: "In winter, Azerbaijan transforms into a winter wonderland, providing excellent opportunities for winter sports enthusiasts. The country has premier ski resorts and offer world-class skiing and snowboarding facilities with a range of slopes suitable for beginners to advanced skiers. Additionally, the picturesque village of Gabala, located in the Tufandag Mountains, offers a charming winter retreat with opportunities for skiing, snowboarding, and even enjoying horse-drawn sleigh rides through snowy landscapes."
About Wego
Wegoprovides award-winning travel search websites and top-ranked mobile apps for travelers living in the Asia Pacific and the Middle East regions. Wego harnesses powerful yet simple to use technology that automates the process of searching and comparing results from hundreds of airlines, hotels, and online travel agency websites.
Wego presents an unbiased comparison of all travel products and prices offered in the marketplace by merchants, both local and global, and enables shoppers to quickly find the best deal and place to book whether it is from an airline or hotel directly or with a third-party aggregator website.
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Hospitality Management
prnewswire | July 18, 2023
AirDNA, a leading short-term rental (STR) data provider, announced today the acquisition of the pioneering location intelligence platform Arrivalist. This strategic acquisition marks an important milestone in AirDNA's commitment to elevating the standard of data-driven decision-making within the hospitality industry. AirDNA and Arrivalist will sit within predictis, a family of leading software-enabled data businesses. predictis is a portfolio company of Alpine Investors, a people-driven private equity firm that invests in software and services businesses.
"By welcoming Arrivalist to AirDNA, we're accelerating our growth trajectory and reinforcing our commitment to delivering industry-leading insights to our customers. The union of our powerful data platforms will provide businesses with unrivaled intelligence, empowering them to strategize with increased precision," said Demi Horvat, AirDNA's CEO.
AirDNA's acquisition of Arrivalist also marks a key next step in predictis' journey to build a world-class investment and operating platform for data founders and entrepreneurs. "AirDNA's acquisition of Arrivalist represents a blueprint for continued add-on acquisitions to supplement organic growth and capitalize on derived data opportunities from adjacent data sets," said Jean-Marc Levy, CEO of predictis.
Arrivalist pioneered the use of location data in the travel industry, using its patented technology to create bold insights into the way travelers interact with destinations. The company's Calibrated Data, Arrival Lift, and other proprietary technologies have won the trust of 200+ travel marketers in 46 of the 50 states since its inception in 2011.
In addition to the expanded insights gained, the acquisition unites two highly talented teams. AirDNA and Arrivalist both possess exceptional technical talent, including data scientists, data engineers, and account managers with deep industry expertise. The integration of these teams will propel the development of state-of-the-art solutions that meet the evolving needs of the industry.
"We're delighted to join with AirDNA to bring customers even more insights, resources, and innovative products. Bringing together these two powerhouses creates tremendous opportunities for future growth and continued innovation," commented Cree Lawson, CEO of Arrivalist. "This partnership with AirDNA and predictis will create unprecedented new value for our customers."
AirDNA and Arrivalist have already established themselves as integral players in guiding decisions for Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs), hotels, and other customers. The acquisition is expected to bring customers access to a broader range of products and services, improved support and expertise, and enhanced innovation. Customers of both companies can expect a seamless transition during the integration process.
Cosine Group served as the financial advisor to Arrivalist.
About AirDNA
AirDNA is a global authority in short-term rental data, offering comprehensive insights and analytics to empower businesses in the short-term rental industry. AirDNA helps vacation rental hosts, managers, and investors make smarter decisions in any market or economic climate. For every short-term rental question, AirDNA has the answer.
About Arrivalist
Arrivalist is a leading location intelligence platform in the travel industry. The company uses mobile location datasets to provide actionable insights on consumer behavior, competitive share, media effectiveness, and market trends. Over 200 travel marketers, including 100 cities, 40 US states, and 4 of the top 10 US theme parks, use these insights to inform media strategy, operations, and destination development.
About predictis
predictis is Alpine Investors' data software business platform. It is the home for data founders and entrepreneurs who seek to scale their businesses as they set out to democratize data and unlock its transformative power. predictis is founded on the thesis that aggregating vertical software-enabled data businesses will unlock significant value for acquired businesses and generate above-average business results. predictis seeks to acquire, operate, and grow leading data software businesses across multiple industry verticals. Founders and data companies interested in learning more about partnering with predictis should contact James Reaney or Pat Eble at jreaney@alpineinvestors.com or peble@alpineinvestors.com. For more information, visit www.predictisdata.com.
About Alpine Investors
Alpine Investors is a people-driven private equity firm committed to building enduring companies by working with, learning from, and developing exceptional people. Alpine specializes in investments in the software and services industries. Alpine's PeopleFirst strategy includes a talent program that allows Alpine to bring leadership to situations where additional or new management is needed post-transaction. Alpine has over $15 billion in assets under management as of March 31, 2023 and has three offices in San Francisco, New York, and Salt Lake City. For more information, visit www.alpineinvestors.com and https://www.alpineinvestors.com/terms-of-use/ for full disclaimers including, but not limited to, third-party reviews and Alpine Operations Group.
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Destination and Tourism
globenewswire | July 24, 2023
Treasure Global Inc an innovative technology solutions provider, today announced that the Company has signed a collaboration agreement with VCI Global Limited (NASDAQ: VCIG) (“VCI Global”), a multi-disciplinary consulting group focused on business and technology, for the development of an artificial intelligence (“AI”)-powered travel platform as a new offering for travellers in Malaysia.
VCI Global has selected TGL to develop the AI-powered platform to function as a high-tech portable concierge App, utilizing the latest advanced technologies to provide relevant travel recommendations in real time. By leveraging advanced AI-powered solutions, the app will aim to revolutionize the travel experience, assisting users in planning travel and related activities, such as suggesting places to explore, dining during their travels in Malaysia and to improve on seamless bookings for flights, hotels and car rentals. The platform is designed to break down language barriers as well, with advanced translation functions.
As part of the agreement, VCI Global will pay a service fee to TGL worth USD$1 million. TGL will develop, design and produce the integrated software platform and provide ongoing maintenance for the AI-powered travel app, which is targeted to launch next year. TGL and VCI Global will share ownership and profits generated from this collaboration on a 50:50 basis.
“We believe that global tourism has returned to its pre-pandemic levels, and we are well-placed to capitalize on the post-pandemic 'revenge travel' phenomenon through our collaboration with VCI Global. Our partnership to develop this app will leverage our combined resources and expertise, namely VCI’s technology experience with TGL’s software development skills, extensive user base and connections with merchants and underscores VCI’s trust in TGL's capabilities. The Malaysian digital economy is projected to grow to USD$34 billion by 2025, of which USD$8 billion1 is expected to be related to online travel-related activities. Our AI-powered travel platform will be a catalyst for growth, unlocking tremendous opportunities in the online travel sector. TGL’s unwavering focus on cutting-edge technologies and strategic partnerships solidifies its position as a trailblazer in the travel industry, strongly positioned to meet the evolving needs of modern travellers,” said Sam Teo, Chief Executive Officer of Treasure Global.
“As in our previous collaborations, I am humbled that once again we are able to play our part by offering our expertise in enhancing the landscape of the travel industry as global tourism migrates itself to high-tech platforms to maximise travellers’ experience. I am very confident that this AI-powered travel platform will act as a growth catalyst for Malaysia’s tourism industry. As these (tourist) arrivals numbers are still below the pre-Covid level, we strongly believe that visitors to Malaysia will increase exponentially in the near future, especially as travel is made easier,” said Dato’ Victor Hoo, Group Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of VCI Global.
About VCI Global Limited
VCI Global is a multi-disciplinary consulting group with key advisory practices in the areas of business and technology. The Company provides business and boardroom strategy services, investor relation services, and technology consultancy services. Its clients range from small-medium enterprises and government-linked agencies to publicly traded companies across a broad array of industries. VCI Global operates solely in Malaysia, with clients predominantly from Malaysia, but also serves some clients from China, Singapore, and the US.
About Treasure Global Inc
Treasure Global is a Malaysian solutions provider developing innovative technology platforms. Treasure Global has developed two technology solutions: the ZCITY App, a unique digital ecosystem that transforms and simplifies the e-payment experience for consumers, while simultaneously allowing them to earn rewards; and TAZTE, a digital F&B management system providing merchants with a one-stop management and automated solution to digitalize their businesses. Treasure Global also acts as a master franchiser in SEA for popular restaurant chains, while providing them with the TAZTE solution. As of March 31, 2023, ZCITY had over 2,400,000 registered users.
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