Sol MeliÌÁ, a leading international hotel chain,
has
gained a foothold in China after signing a partnership agreement with
electronic distribution specialists, 4oceans
.

Under the terms of the joint venture, Sol Meliá`s worldwide inventory will
be made available for the first time to over 3000 Chinese bookers via
4oceans` multi-lingual, web based platform.

The deal will also allow European and US based agents connected to the
4oceans platform access to Sol Meliá`s current portfolio. This includes 350
hotels in 30 countries throughout Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific
through its Meliá Hotels, TRYP Hotels, Sol Hotels and Paradisus Resorts
brands.

“The partnership with 4oceans has enabled our company to move into new and
important distribution channels previously untouched by our hotels,” said
David Orensanz, Director of Reservation Systems at Sol Meliá. 

“China is one of these markets and perhaps has the most potential.
Approximately 17 million outbound visitors leave the country each year and
this presents a tremendous opportunity to further build on improving our
occupancy levels.”

4oceans also features over 1000 properties in China on its web distribution
system; and this has confirmed it as the largest electronic distribution
channel in China. Recent deals with Pegasus and CCRA have further boosted
the wide range of hotels available on-line to agents who can subscribe to
the 4oceans platform from as little as £99 per annum.

4oceans Managing Director, David Yates added: “4oceans is China`s GDS for
hotel rooms, offering a gateway to the rest of the world and presenting an
opportunity that has never been available before.

“We are set up to handle all bookings and administration in the country in
real time as opposed to the traditional methods of phone and fax, which
slashes the average processing cost by up to 10 times.”

The deal will see Sol Melia`s hotels available on the platform in April.

Related stories on ITN:

(25/02/2003)
4oceans Signs Agreement with Pegasus Solutions

(07/02/2003) 4oceans Secures Deal With `Hotel-lifestyle`

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