PUTRAJAYA, 27 July 2016 – Malaysian tourism merchants can soon market their products and services directly to Chinese travellers through an e-marketplace in China. This is made possible by a strategic collaboration between Tourism Malaysia and Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group to create the Malaysia Tourism Pavilion (MTP) on Alitrip.

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has been signed between Tourism Malaysia and Alibaba Group to promote the one-stop e-commerce and online marketing platform together, which enables Chinese tourists to access Malaysia’s travel and tourism products and services.

The platform will be managed and operated by Beijing Xinlian Mobile Technology, appointed by Alibaba and endorsed by Tourism Malaysia, under the guidelines set by the two parties.

A seminar was organised by Tourism Malaysia and Alibaba Group at the Ministry of Tourism & Culture in Putrajaya on 21 July to share the details of MTP with the local industry players and convince them to promote and market their tourism products and services to Chinese consumers via the platform.

It was graced by Tourism Malaysia Deputy Director General (Strategic & Domestic) Chong Yoke Har, Alitrip Vice President Tony Duan, and Beijing Xinlian Mobile Technology CEO Julius See. The seminar attracted about 120 industry players comprising travel agents, product owners, theme park operators, airlines, and niche product associations.

“We believe that the tourism industry can benefit greatly from the e-commerce platform to boost sales. The hotel industry, for instance, has been utilising this platform for years. In fact, the management of e-commerce and online channels is one of the main tools for promoting and improving sales in the current hotel businesses,” said Chong in her welcome speech.

The travel products and services promoted and offered via MTP include local tour and hotel packages (with or without flight tickets), shopping and dining mobile vouchers, local attraction and event tickets, and local transportation and communication services. These products will be offered directly to Chinese tourists by participating travel companies in Malaysia and China.

China has always been an important market for Malaysia and the country will continue to strive to get a bigger slice of the Chinese outbound market. Last year, tourist arrivals from China to Malaysia increased by 4%, reaching 1.68 million compared to 1.61 million in 2014.

ENDS

For more media releases, media info and media features on Malaysia’s tourism industry, kindly visit the Media Centre of Tourism Malaysia’s website at http://www.tourismmalaysia.gov.my/

MALAYSIA TOURISM PROMOTION BOARD OR TOURISM MALAYSIA is an agency under the Ministry of Tourism & Culture, Malaysia. Tourism Malaysia focuses on the specific task of promoting Malaysia at all levels. Since its inception, Tourism Malaysia has grown by leaps and bounds and it has emerged as a major player in the international tourism scene. In 2015, Malaysia registered 25.7 million tourist arrivals and RM69.1 billion in receipts.

Through the Tourism NKEA (National Key Economic Area), collaborative efforts between the Ministry of Tourism and Culture, other Government agencies and the private sector have been enhanced to help secure Malaysia’s position as a leading tourist destination and achieve the country’s target of 36 million tourist arrivals and RM168 billion in receipts by 2020.

The targets set under the Tourism NKEA will be achieved through the implementation of twelve Entry Point Projects (EPPs) clustered under five themes: Affordable Luxury; Nature Adventure; Family Fun; Events, Entertainment, Spa and Sports; and Business Tourism.

Press contact:

Media Relations Unit:

Shukri Hanafiah, Senior Deputy Director, Corporate Communication Division
Tel: +603-8891 8767
Email: shukrihanafiah@tourism.gov.my

Editorial Unit:

Anis Rozalina Ramli (Ms), Senior Editor, Corporate Communication Division
Tel: +603-8891 8759
Email: anisramli@tourism.gov.my