SHANGHAI, Nov. 23, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Ctrip.com
International, Ltd. (Nasdaq: CTRP), a leading travel service
provider of accommodation reservation, transportation ticketing,
packaged tours and corporate travel management in China ("Ctrip" or the "Company"), today
announced that it signed a definitive agreement with the majority
shareholders of Skyscanner Holdings Limited ("Skyscanner"), a
leading global travel search site headquartered in Edinburgh, the United Kingdom, under which Ctrip will acquire
all of such shareholders' shares in Skyscanner and will offer to
acquire shares from the remaining shareholders of Skyscanner. The
terms of the acquisition value Skyscanner at approximately £1.4
billion and the purchase consideration consists of cash mainly, the
remainder consisting of Ctrip ordinary shares and loan notes.
The boards of directors of the Company and Skyscanner have
approved the transaction, which is subject to customary closing
conditions, and is expected to close by the end of 2016.
Skyscanner's current management team will continue to manage
Skyscanner's operations independently as part of the Ctrip
group.
Skyscanner is a leading travel metasearch company that enables
users to compare prices from hundreds of travel sites when
searching for flights, hotels, and rental cars. It ranks as one of
the top online travel brands based on search interest, serving 60
million monthly active users and available in over 30 languages. It
has established leadership in Europe and a growing presence in APAC and the
Americas.
"Skyscanner is one of the largest travel search platforms in the
world," said James Jianzhang Liang, co-founder and Executive
Chairman of Ctrip. "We are excited to welcome Skyscanner into the
Ctrip group. Ctrip and Skyscanner share the same passion and
dedication in providing travelers around the world with better
services. This acquisition will strengthen long-term growth drivers
for both companies. Skyscanner will complement our positioning at a
global scale, and we will leverage our experience, technology
and booking capabilities to help Skyscanner."
"Ctrip is the clear market leader in China and a company we can learn a huge amount
from," said Gareth Williams,
co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Skyscanner. "Today's news
takes Skyscanner one step closer to our goal of making travel
search as simple as possible for travelers around the world. Ctrip
and Skyscanner share a common view – that organizing travel has a
long way to go to being solved. To do so requires powerful
technology and a traveler-first approach. In taking the next step
to achieving our goal, Skyscanner will remain operationally
independent and our growing global team will continue to innovate
and deliver the products travelers know and love. It's an exciting
time for our business, our partners and the travelers who use
us."
Safe Harbor Statement
This announcement contains forward-looking statements. These
statements are made under the "safe harbor" provisions of the
U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These
forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as
"may," "will," "expect," "anticipate," "future," "intend," "plan,"
"believe," "estimate," "is/are likely to," "confident" or other
similar statements. Ctrip may also make written or oral
forward-looking statements in its periodic reports to the SEC, in
its annual report to shareholders, in press releases and other
written materials and in oral statements made by its officers,
directors or employees to third parties. Forward-looking statements
involve inherent risks and uncertainties. A number of important
factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those
contained in any forward-looking statement. Potential risks and
uncertainties include, but are not limited to, severe or prolonged
downturn in the global or Chinese economy, general declines or
disruptions in the travel industry, volatility in the trading price
of Ctrip's ADSs, Ctrip's reliance on its relationships and
contractual arrangements with travel suppliers and strategic
alliances, failure to further increase Ctrip's brand recognition to
obtain new business partners and consumers, failure to compete
against new and existing competitors, failure to successfully
manage current growth and potential future growth, risks associated
with any strategic investments or acquisitions, seasonality in the
travel industry in mainland China,
Hong Kong, Macau or Taiwan, failure to successfully develop
Ctrip's corporate travel business, damage to or failure of Ctrip's
infrastructure and technology, loss of services of Ctrip's key
executives, adverse changes in economic and political policies of
the PRC government, inflation in China, risks and uncertainties associated with
PRC laws and regulations with respect to the ownership structure of
Ctrip's affiliated Chinese entities and the contractual
arrangements among Ctrip, its affiliated Chinese entities and their
shareholders, and other risks outlined in Ctrip's filings with the
SEC, including its annual report on Form 20-F and other
filings. All information provided in this press release and in the
attachments is as of the date of the issuance, and Ctrip does not
undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statement,
except as required under applicable law.
About Ctrip.com International, Ltd.
Ctrip.com International, Ltd. is a leading travel service
provider of accommodation reservation, transportation ticketing,
packaged tours and corporate travel management in China. It is the largest online consolidator
of accommodations and transportation tickets in China in terms of transaction volume. Ctrip
enables business and leisure travelers to make informed and
cost-effective bookings by aggregating comprehensive travel related
information and offering its services through an advanced
transaction and service platform consisting of its mobile
apps, Internet websites and centralized, toll-free, 24-hour
customer service center. Ctrip also helps customers book vacation
packages and guided tours. In addition, through its corporate
travel management services, Ctrip helps corporate clients
effectively manage their travel requirements. Since its inception
in 1999, Ctrip has experienced substantial growth and become one of
the best-known travel brands in China.
For further information, please contact:
Investor Relations
Ctrip.com International, Ltd.
Tel: (+86) 21 3406 4880, ext. 12300
Email: iremail@ctrip.com
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SOURCE Ctrip.com International, Ltd.