Taobao.com teams up with China Eastern Airline to boost online ticket sales

Posted by Aliuser on Nov 25, 2009 in C2C marketplace

Taobao.com, which is owned by Alibaba group, will soon has a new online ticket store in its business to consumer platform (B2C) as China Eastern Airline has decided to come at play

China Eastern Airline is now taking advantage of the gowing online shopping environment in China in an effort to increase its ticket sales. Hangzhou-based Alibaba will provide payment services for China Eastern Airline’s ticket sales through Alipay, Alibaba group’s online payment vehicle.

Working against the market background of cutting-throat competition, surging fuel costs and unstable travelers’patterns, China Eastern Airline is now exploring new way to expand its revenue model and reach out online users more aggressively.

According to China technology and media consultant Analysys International, online retail sales totaled 6 billion yuan ($887 million) in the third quarter of this year, up by a third from the quarter before and up 171 percent from the same period of last year.

Though consumer electronics and household items comprise most online sales, dozens of travel agents also offer their services on Taobao.com, where customers use instant message chatting to barter over prices and seal deals in minutes. Prices can be up to 80 percent cheaper than tickets bought directly from the airlines.