(Yicai Global) March 14 -- As an increasing number of Western short-term lodging service companies foray into China, their Chinese counterparts are ramping up efforts to expand into overseas markets, intensifying competition in the global hospitality sector.  

Xiaozhu.com, a short-term lodging service site developed by Beijing Run Technology Co., entered into a global partnership with Booking Holding Inc.'s Agoda Co., both firms said yesterday. The pair will kick off cooperation in wide variety of businesses ranging from listing-sharing and technology and service innovation to branding and marketing.

They have started exchanging listings of properties for short-term lease, under which they will co-market more than 100,000 lodging houses during the initial phase of the partnership, online news outlet The Paper reported.

Foreign properties offered by Agoda will be displayed on Xiaozhu.com, per the agreement, and the site will translate the listings into Chinese and provide customer service in the local language if a user is interested in Agoda properties. Similarly, Agoda will do the same if its users are interested in rental properties from Xiaozhu.com.

Business Chemistry

Xiaozhu.com's operations in the global market started last year and currently offers lodging houses in more than 100 foreign cities. It saw the fastest business growth in markets such as Japan and Thailand where short-term lodging is very popular. The deal with Agoda is an important step to develop overseas markets, according to the latest data from the company.

As a global leader in the online travel service market, Agoda offers more than 1.8 million accommodation options and publishes listings in 38 languages. "The partnership will offer tourists more choices other than hotel accommodation, allowing us to cater to the needs of more customers. It will also [help us] to meet different budgetary needs," said Liu Jianming, managing director at Agoda Greater China.

Chen Chi, co-founder and chief executive of Xiaozhu.com, believes the deal will enable both companies to benefit from their complementary strengths and bring win-win results. "With outbound and inbound tourism growing rapidly, short-term lodging service platforms must be able to provide high quality services for users across the world, so Xiaozhu has been stepping up collaborations with partners along the industry chain," Chen said.

"Given its strong track record of successful operations in markets all around the globe, especially Asian countries, Agoda will give fresh momentum to Xiaozhu's globalization campaign," Chen suggested.