Updated below In an interesting twist of fate, Online Travel Agent TravelGuru has outsourced its entire Flight booking section to meta search Ixigo.com. This effectively means that the core of TravelGuru business is now an acquisition that they had made last year - hotel booking site Desiya.com. TravelGuru had raised, in all, $25 million in investment from Sequoia Capital and Battery Ventures, and is a part of Times of India's Private Treaties portfolio. TravelGuru had reportedly acquired Desiya for around Rs. 100 crores, around $25 Million at the time. Difference In Approach to Zero Percent Commissions This deal with Ixigo also highlights two different approaches to the unfolding situation in the travel industry, around Zero percent commissions. At one end, you have other OTAs like Cleartrip who have included booking fees, and at the other, you TravelGuru which has tied up with a meta searches like Ixigo, for a revenue share. Zoomtra, from the Smile Interactive Group, is another meta search. Aloke Bajpai, CEO of Ixigo, told MediaNama that they will be sharing revenue with TravelGuru on flight bookings and advertisements. Ixigo showcases ads on the search results page and also receives incentives from Advertisers - they are not a travel agent, but received performance based incentives from airlines, from their marketing budget. Bajpai feels that agents will become more expensive than airline travel sites going forward. Update: TravelGuru appears to have taken offence to the suggestion that they're naught but Desiya. A response: "Travelguru believes in offering the best prices…
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