By Kang Seung-woo
U.S.-based online travel giant Expedia is set to enter the Korean market in efforts to gain a better footing in Asia.
According to industry sources on Wednesday, Expedia, which has already launched a Korean website, will officially begin business here on July 20.
There are mixed reactions in the sector on the world’s leading online travel company’s arrival in the fast-growing local market.
Expedia has localized sites for travelers in 20 countries including Japan and Singapore and offers more than 5,000 travel products and services with a network of 130,000 hotels across the world. Via its website, travelers can book airline tickets, hotel reservations and car rentals.
Currently, its Korean website just provides hotel reservation services, but if it is loaded with other features including flights in the near future, Expedia, which has cemented its status as a pioneer of dynamic packages, is expected to mount a daunting challenge to local players.
Dynamic packages are a new fad among travelers, as they can be customized to meet consumers’ needs in real-time using a Web-based interface that goes beyond pre-designed package tours.
“As Expedia has studied the Korean market through Hotels.com, its affiliate operating here, the company may heavily affect the local travel sector if it comes up with aggressive marketing policies,” said an industry official.
With the firm’s imminent arrival, local leading travel agencies have been gearing up for Expedia’s entry into Korea.
Interpark Tour is pushing dynamic packages, while Traport, a self-proclaimed provider of the nation’s lone dynamic packages, also offers the combined service at discount prices.
However, some say that the industry needs to wait and see if Expedia achieves the expected results here because local agencies have an upper hand in some areas.
“Expedia has offered various discounted products, but base prices are not always cheaper,” said an official of an online hotel booking site.
“Although local companies’ marketing costs will soar, they have an edge in that they can offer a variety of client-customized services,” he added.
Foreign-based online travel websites such as Agoda and Hotels.com, both of which are hotel reservation service providers, have entered the Korean market, but they have not gained as much popularity as originally predicted.
“Until now, there are many people who are unaware of foreign travel websites,” the official said.