28 September 2000Priceline.com will launch its Hong Kong
and Singapore sites by the first quarter of next year,
Robert Wisse, Priceline.com's senior vice president in
product development and planning told TravelWeekly
East.
"Over the next 12 months, we will launch one site a
month," he said.
Priceline.com's ventures into Asia are developed under
the operations of a company, jointly owned by Priceline and
Hong Kong-based Hutchison Whampoa.
The next few countries in line include Taiwan, India,
Malaysia and China, said Wisse. Priceline's entry into each
market will be structured differently, according to local
laws, he said.
He said however there were some rules of business that
are global - such as wanting to save money. "Everyone wants
to save money - it's just a matter of figuring out how to
get there," said Wisse.
"We will get into each market, get people to be
comfortable with us and hire locals."