HostelBookers purchased for $100m
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HostelBookers.com has been bought out by Web Reservations International (WRI) for US$100 million (GBP65m ).
The all-paper deal will see the booking platform receive investment from its new owners to compete with Expedia and Booking.com.
This will include an increased marketing and services spend as well as an investment into its technology.
A statement from WRI’s chief executive Feargal Mooney read:
“We are delighted to have agreed the purchase of HostelBookers with its owners. We have long admired the business, and can see real opportunities for our customers and property owners in this combination.
“WRI’s mission is to be the fastest-growing online provider of great value accommodation, using innovative technology to inspire independent-minded travellers everywhere.
“To compete head-to-head with the “big beasts”, like Expedia and Booking.com, we need to invest. The capacity to inject more resources into online marketing and technology is absolutely key to this sector, and our increase in scale will enable us to ramp that activity up in the face of some very large and dominant competitors.”