 | |
| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Travel |
| Founded | (2003) [1] |
| Founders |
|
| Headquarters | , |
Key people |
|
| Revenue | £261 million (2016) [2] |
Number of employees | 1,200+ (2024) [3] |
| Parent | Trip.com Group |
| Website | skyscanner.com |
Skyscanner is a search aggregator and travel agency based in Edinburgh, Scotland. [1] The site is available in over 30 languages and is used by 100 million people per month. [1] [4] The company lets people research and book travel options for their trips, including flights, hotels and car hire. [1]
History
The company was formed in 2003 [1] by three information technology professionals, Gareth Williams, Barry Smith, and Bonamy Grimes, after Gareth was frustrated by the difficulties of finding cheap flights to ski resorts. [5] Skyscanner was first developed and released in 2002.[ citation needed] In 2003, the first employee was hired to assist with site development.[ citation needed] The Edinburgh office was opened in 2004. [6]
In 2008, Skyscanner received first round funding of £2.5 million from venture capital firm Scottish Equity Partners (SEP). [7]
In 2009, the year after SEP invested in the business, Skyscanner reported its first profit. [8]
In 2011, Skyscanner acquired Zoombu. [9] Skyscanner opened an office in Singapore in September 2011, which is headquarters for its Asia-Pacific operations. [10] In 2012, a Beijing office was added, as Skyscanner began a partnership with Baidu, China's largest search engine. [11]
By 2013, the company employed over 180 people. [12] In February 2013, Skyscanner announced plans to open a United States base in Miami. [12] In October 2013, Sequoia Capital purchased an interest in Skyscanner that valued the company at $800 million. [13] In June 2014, Skyscanner acquired Youbibi, a travel search engine company based in Shenzhen, China. [14]
In October 2014, Skyscanner acquired the Budapest-based mobile app developer Distinction. [15]
By February 2015, the company employed 600 people, double the employment of 18 months earlier. [16]
In January 2016, the company raised $192 million based on a $1.6 billion valuation for the company. [17]
In November 2016, a Chinese company Trip.com Group (formerly Ctrip) bought Skyscanner for $1.75 billion. [18] Following the sale to Ctrip, Skyscanner's largest shareholder, SEP, completed its exit from the business. [19]
In 2017, Ctrip bought the Trip.com domain and launched Trip.com. The original platform became a subsidiary of Skyscanner. [20]
In 2020, after COVID-19 rocked the travel industry, the company announced that it would lay off 300 employees (20% of its staff). It was likely to close two offices in Budapest, Hungary and Sofia, Bulgaria. [21]
In 2022, Skyscanner partnered with Huawei to bring various travel services Huawei Mobile Services (HMS) and Petal Search and Petal Maps. [22]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e "About Skyscanner". skyscanner.com.
- ^ Field, Matthew (4 October 2019). "Skyscanner soars to record revenues under Chinese ownership". The Telegraph.
- ^ "United by a love of travel".
- ^ O'Hear, Steve (28 September 2012). "Skyscanner's Mobile Apps Hit 10M Downloads, Letting Users Find Cheap Flights On The Go". TechCrunch.
- ^ Trapp, Roger (18 February 2006). "How to launch a great business". The Independent.
- ^ "In pictures: inside Skyscanner's head office". Edinburgh Evening News. Retrieved 14 November 2023.
- ^ "Skyscanner Lands VC Funding to Build World's Leading Flight Search Engine". Skyscanner's Travel Blog. 20 January 2008. Retrieved 21 April 2020.
- ^ "Travel firm secures major investment". BBC News. 12 January 2016. Retrieved 21 April 2020.
- ^ Butcher, Mike (17 January 2011). "Travel search engine Skyscanner acquires Zoombu". TechCrunch.
- ^ "Skyscanner to set up operation in Singapore". BBC News. 26 June 2011.
- ^ "Skyscanner lands China search engine deal". BBC News. 23 August 2012.
- ^ a b "Flight firm Skyscanner moves in to America". BBC News. 4 February 2012.
- ^ "Skyscanner valued at $800m by backer of Apple". The Evening Standard. 3 October 2013.
- ^ "Skyscanner buys Chinese metasearch firm Youbibi". BBC News. 25 June 2014.
- ^ O'Hear, Steve (22 October 2014). "Travel Search Company Skyscanner Acquires Budapest-Based Mobile App Developer Distinction". TechCrunch.
- ^ Russell, Jon (23 February 2015). "Skyscanner optimistic as revenue growth slows". Financial Times.
- ^ Shu, Catherine (12 January 2016). "Travel Search Site Skyscanner Raises $192M For International Expansion". TechCrunch.
- ^ Dickie, Mure (23 November 2016). "China's Ctrip is buying flight search company SkyScanner for $1.74 billion". TechCrunch.
- ^ "Scottish Equity Partners exits Skyscanner following £1.4 billion sale". Growth Business. 9 December 2016. Retrieved 21 April 2020.
- ^ Bort, Julie (1 November 2017). "Tiny startup Trip.com has been acquired by Chinese travel giant Ctrip – a move that could shake up the travel industry". Business Insider.
- ^ Rafiah, Moshe (14 July 2020). "A Skyscanner update". Skyscanner.
- ^ Sarkar, Amy (26 May 2022). "Huawei and Skyscanner partners for Petal Search integration". HuaweiCentral. Retrieved 26 May 2022.
External links
- Trip.com Group
- Metasearch engines
- Travel ticket search engines
- Universal Windows Platform apps
- British travel websites
- British companies established in 2002
- Transport companies established in 2002
- Internet properties established in 2002
- 2016 mergers and acquisitions
- British subsidiaries of foreign companies
- Companies based in Edinburgh
- 2002 establishments in Scotland
|
| |
| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Travel |
| Founded | (2003) [1] |
| Founders |
|
| Headquarters | , |
Key people |
|
| Revenue | £261 million (2016) [2] |
Number of employees | 1,200+ (2024) [3] |
| Parent | Trip.com Group |
| Website | skyscanner.com |
Skyscanner is a search aggregator and travel agency based in Edinburgh, Scotland. [1] The site is available in over 30 languages and is used by 100 million people per month. [1] [4] The company lets people research and book travel options for their trips, including flights, hotels and car hire. [1]
History
The company was formed in 2003 [1] by three information technology professionals, Gareth Williams, Barry Smith, and Bonamy Grimes, after Gareth was frustrated by the difficulties of finding cheap flights to ski resorts. [5] Skyscanner was first developed and released in 2002.[ citation needed] In 2003, the first employee was hired to assist with site development.[ citation needed] The Edinburgh office was opened in 2004. [6]
In 2008, Skyscanner received first round funding of £2.5 million from venture capital firm Scottish Equity Partners (SEP). [7]
In 2009, the year after SEP invested in the business, Skyscanner reported its first profit. [8]
In 2011, Skyscanner acquired Zoombu. [9] Skyscanner opened an office in Singapore in September 2011, which is headquarters for its Asia-Pacific operations. [10] In 2012, a Beijing office was added, as Skyscanner began a partnership with Baidu, China's largest search engine. [11]
By 2013, the company employed over 180 people. [12] In February 2013, Skyscanner announced plans to open a United States base in Miami. [12] In October 2013, Sequoia Capital purchased an interest in Skyscanner that valued the company at $800 million. [13] In June 2014, Skyscanner acquired Youbibi, a travel search engine company based in Shenzhen, China. [14]
In October 2014, Skyscanner acquired the Budapest-based mobile app developer Distinction. [15]
By February 2015, the company employed 600 people, double the employment of 18 months earlier. [16]
In January 2016, the company raised $192 million based on a $1.6 billion valuation for the company. [17]
In November 2016, a Chinese company Trip.com Group (formerly Ctrip) bought Skyscanner for $1.75 billion. [18] Following the sale to Ctrip, Skyscanner's largest shareholder, SEP, completed its exit from the business. [19]
In 2017, Ctrip bought the Trip.com domain and launched Trip.com. The original platform became a subsidiary of Skyscanner. [20]
In 2020, after COVID-19 rocked the travel industry, the company announced that it would lay off 300 employees (20% of its staff). It was likely to close two offices in Budapest, Hungary and Sofia, Bulgaria. [21]
In 2022, Skyscanner partnered with Huawei to bring various travel services Huawei Mobile Services (HMS) and Petal Search and Petal Maps. [22]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e "About Skyscanner". skyscanner.com.
- ^ Field, Matthew (4 October 2019). "Skyscanner soars to record revenues under Chinese ownership". The Telegraph.
- ^ "United by a love of travel".
- ^ O'Hear, Steve (28 September 2012). "Skyscanner's Mobile Apps Hit 10M Downloads, Letting Users Find Cheap Flights On The Go". TechCrunch.
- ^ Trapp, Roger (18 February 2006). "How to launch a great business". The Independent.
- ^ "In pictures: inside Skyscanner's head office". Edinburgh Evening News. Retrieved 14 November 2023.
- ^ "Skyscanner Lands VC Funding to Build World's Leading Flight Search Engine". Skyscanner's Travel Blog. 20 January 2008. Retrieved 21 April 2020.
- ^ "Travel firm secures major investment". BBC News. 12 January 2016. Retrieved 21 April 2020.
- ^ Butcher, Mike (17 January 2011). "Travel search engine Skyscanner acquires Zoombu". TechCrunch.
- ^ "Skyscanner to set up operation in Singapore". BBC News. 26 June 2011.
- ^ "Skyscanner lands China search engine deal". BBC News. 23 August 2012.
- ^ a b "Flight firm Skyscanner moves in to America". BBC News. 4 February 2012.
- ^ "Skyscanner valued at $800m by backer of Apple". The Evening Standard. 3 October 2013.
- ^ "Skyscanner buys Chinese metasearch firm Youbibi". BBC News. 25 June 2014.
- ^ O'Hear, Steve (22 October 2014). "Travel Search Company Skyscanner Acquires Budapest-Based Mobile App Developer Distinction". TechCrunch.
- ^ Russell, Jon (23 February 2015). "Skyscanner optimistic as revenue growth slows". Financial Times.
- ^ Shu, Catherine (12 January 2016). "Travel Search Site Skyscanner Raises $192M For International Expansion". TechCrunch.
- ^ Dickie, Mure (23 November 2016). "China's Ctrip is buying flight search company SkyScanner for $1.74 billion". TechCrunch.
- ^ "Scottish Equity Partners exits Skyscanner following £1.4 billion sale". Growth Business. 9 December 2016. Retrieved 21 April 2020.
- ^ Bort, Julie (1 November 2017). "Tiny startup Trip.com has been acquired by Chinese travel giant Ctrip – a move that could shake up the travel industry". Business Insider.
- ^ Rafiah, Moshe (14 July 2020). "A Skyscanner update". Skyscanner.
- ^ Sarkar, Amy (26 May 2022). "Huawei and Skyscanner partners for Petal Search integration". HuaweiCentral. Retrieved 26 May 2022.
External links
- Trip.com Group
- Metasearch engines
- Travel ticket search engines
- Universal Windows Platform apps
- British travel websites
- British companies established in 2002
- Transport companies established in 2002
- Internet properties established in 2002
- 2016 mergers and acquisitions
- British subsidiaries of foreign companies
- Companies based in Edinburgh
- 2002 establishments in Scotland