HONG KONG, April 27, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Marriott
International, Inc. (NASDAQ: MAR) announced its redesigned
storefront on Fliggy, Alibaba's travel service platform, and the
rollout of Post Post Pay (PPP) functionality across more than 1,000
Marriott hotels globally. Through the digital solutions, Marriott
International elevates both the online and offline travel
experience for Chinese consumers.
As part of Marriott's first phase of service enhancements, its
new storefront on Fliggy (marriottcn.fliggy.com) will elevate the
digital experience for Chinese consumers. Beginning in April 2018, the new storefront will feature
approximately 6,000 hotels from across Marriott International's
global inventory of 30 brands, presented in a Chinese
traveler-friendly layout. Through the storefront, Fliggy's
innovative PPP functionality will be offered to qualified Fliggy
users at more than 1,000 hotels globally, including more than 270
hotels in the Greater China
region, where the service is already available, and in high-demand
locations throughout the Asia
Pacific region, such as Australia, Japan, the Maldives, Singapore, South
Korea and Thailand. To
complement these enhancements, Marriott expects to certify over
1,000 hotels globally in its "Li Yu"
program, designed to provide travelers from China a warm welcome and the comforts of
home throughout the world.
In August 2017, Marriott
International and Alibaba Group formed a joint venture aimed at
redefining the travel experience for the hundreds of millions of
Chinese consumers traveling domestically and abroad every year. It
utilizes industry expertise, local customer insights and technology
to empower travel companies to foster an innovative customer
experience for Chinese travelers. The global rollout of PPP, an
innovative credit-based hotel payment service developed by Fliggy,
reaffirms Marriott's commitment to enhancing the travel experience
of Chinese consumers. It enables qualified Fliggy users to book
hotels without paying a deposit, have a comprehensive wallet-free
experience during their stay and enjoy an express check-out
service. Room charges and incidental expenses are automatically
settled afterwards, providing a seamless, wallet-free payment
experience for both customers and hotels.
The PPP program was introduced in March
2015 as part of Fliggy's strategy to reshape the hospitality
industry through internet-based innovation. More than 100,000
hotels across mainland China have
joined the program since its launch. Marriott International is the
pioneer in rolling out this innovative experience on a global
scale.
"China is the leading market
for mobile payments. Sixty-five percent of Chinese tourists have
used mobile payments on their most recent trips
overseas,"1 said Peggy Fang
Roe, Chief Sales and Marketing Officer, Asia Pacific, Marriott International and Board
Member of the joint venture. "Offering PPP will be a key
competitive advantage for Marriott International hotels, connecting
our global portfolio of brands with Chinese travelers. Combined
with Marriott's exclusive 'Li Yu' program, we are extending the
comforts of home to Chinese travelers, from payment methods to a
suite of amenities and services tailored for Chinese habits,
preferences, and appetites as they travel the world."
Marriott's redesigned storefront on Fliggy now features its
global inventory of hotels with a localized, mobile-enhanced,
user-friendly layout. It includes a search functionality that is
more intuitive to Chinese consumers, along with experiences and
offers geared to their usual preferences - particularly for leisure
- and hotel-level information curated to help them make more
informed decisions on where they want to stay. Marriott loyalty
members have access to special members-only rates through the
storefront, and can also see which hotels have been "Li Yu" certified and which hotels accept
PPP.
Initiatives to be unveiled in the coming months include travel
planning services in Mandarin, VIP member experiences and other
exciting innovations as Marriott International continues to elevate
the outbound travel experience for Chinese consumers.
About Marriott International
Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ: MAR) is based in
Bethesda, Maryland, USA, and
encompasses a portfolio of more than 6,500 properties in 30 leading
hotel brands spanning 127 countries and territories. Marriott
operates and franchises hotels and licenses vacation ownership
resorts all around the world. The company also operates
award-winning loyalty programs: Marriott Rewards®, which
includes The Ritz-Carlton Rewards®, and Starwood
Preferred Guest®. For more information, please visit our
website at www.marriott.com, and for the latest company news, visit
www.marriottnewscenter.com. In addition, connect with us on
Facebook and @MarriottIntl on Twitter and Instagram.
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1 Data from The Outbound Chinese Tourism and Consumption
Trends: 2017 Survey by Nielsen
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SOURCE Marriott International, Inc.