MakeMyTrip posts wider Q3 loss, may reconsider OYO strategy
MakeMyTrip posts wider Q3 loss, may reconsider OYO strategy

MakeMyTrip, India’s online travel and booking major posted a wider loss for third quarter ended December 31, 2017, owing to its discounts and promotion strategy, but reported strong topline growth on the back of strong demand for its core services.

According to the company's top executives the company is mulling over its strategy relating to SoftBank-backed OYO, which has emerged as a real contender to the country’s online travel players, as well as brick-and-mortar majors, with its mix of affordable budget hotels.

Mohit Kabra, chief financial officer, MakeMyTrip, said, “We may revisit our position on OYO, as it is shifting increasingly to the hospitality side. Therefore, they do not seem to be a direct competitor anymore, but can be seen as a source of supply.”

The statement was drawn out two years after MakeMyTrip removed OYO from its platform, citing strategic overlaps. Additionally, in 2017, Ruptub Solutions, which owns and operates budget hotel chain Treebo and competes with MakeMyTrip, had delisted all its properties from the MakeMyTrip and Ibibo platforms, citing higher commissions being charged by India’s largest online travel operator. At the time, the move was largely seen as a bid by MakeMyTrip, which has a market capitalisation of $2.94 billion, to weed out competitors and establish its dominance in the hotels segment.

 
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