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There have been dozens of travel tech acquisitions so far this year: That includes at least 11 deals over the past three months, which followed at least 15 earlier this year.
It’s all part of what industry leaders said would be an active time for mergers and acquisitions. And there are more coming.
Private equity companies have about $300 billion to burn, according to a report earlier this year by Investment bank AGC Partners. As many tech startups struggle in a tighter funding environment, that’s a good recipe for more M&A activity.
That means those firms, and companies backed by those firms, are looking to swoop in for good deals on tech or staff.
In the deals outlined below, nearly none of the sale prices were disclosed. That often — but not always — means it was a small deal, especially in the case of a startup buying another company.
Juniper Group, Blackstone Growth, and Duetto (backed by GrowthCurve Capital) — all involved in activity outlined below — are among companies that have said recently that they are eyeing the market for more deals.
Duetto Acquired by GrowthCurve Capital
Duetto, the revenue management tech company for hotels, was acquired in late June by private equity firm GrowthCurve Capital.
San Francisco-based Duetto provides hotel companies with a software platform meant to streamline revenue management, online marketing, merchandising, and data-based analysis. Hotels can use the products to set room rates that adjust automatically based on market changes.
With resources from the new owners, Duetto plans to accelerate its AI strategy, launch new lines of business, and expand into new markets.
In an interview with Skift, Duetto CEO David Woolenberg said that the company may expand via acquisition if it makes sense. (See Skift’s story.)
Acquisitions by Yatra, Blackstone, TravelPerk, and More
- Yatra Online, the largest corporate travel services provider in India, said in September that it plans to acquire Globe All India Services for $15.3 million. The deal would add 360 corporate customers to Yatra’s Portfolio. (See Skift’s story.)
- World2Meet, a division of Spain-based tourism company Iberostar Group, in August bought a business unit from online travel agency Despegar. The business, called BDExperience, helps tourists with group and private tours, airport transfers, and more. Nearly 600 Despegar employees, about 13% of its workforce, transferred to World2Meet with the deal. (See Skift’s story.)
- Blackstone in August said it plans to acquire a majority stake in hotel accounting tech company M3. The company has more than 1,000 hotel operators and management companies as clients, representing more than 8,000 properties in North America. The deal is going through Blackstone Growth, the company’s strategic growth equity business. (See Skift’s story.)
- TravelPerk in June acquired Chicago-based AmTrav, making the U.S. the corporate travel tech startup’s top region for revenue. Barcelona-based TravelPerk said the deal added 1,000 new small- and medium-sized business clients, and doubled its revenue in the U.S. Previously, the U.S. was TravelPerk’s second-largest market after the UK. (See Skift’s Story.)
- Lighthouse, which helps hotels and short-term rentals analyze their market demand, rates, and positioning in June bought competitor HQ Revenue. (See Skift’s Story.)
Travalyst Acquires Sustainability Tech from Shuttered Weeva
Travalyst, the travel sustainability nonprofit founded by Prince Harry, said Tuesday that it has acquired the tech from the former company Weeva.
Julie Cheetham, founder and former CEO of Weeva, is joining Travalyst as the COO.
The company has acquired the tech only; Weeva’s former employees are not joining Travalyst, according to a spokesperson.
London-based Travalyst is a coalition of travel companies including Google, Booking.com, Expedia, Skyscanner, and others. The organization’s model for calculating flight emissions powers the estimates that its members publish online for consumers.
Weeva offered a similar service to tourism companies before it closed in July. The organization had been funded by Oppenheimer Generations, an investment fund led by the Oppenheimer family.
Travalyst is now working to strengthen its model for estimating flight emissions and plans to roll out a similar model for hotels, all meant to inform travelers about the environmental impact of their trips.
Juniper Group Expands Travel Tech Business with Lleego Acquisition
Juniper Group in July acquired Lleego, a software company that specializes in flight management and booking.
Spain-based Juniper Group is an operating portfolio of Vela Software, one of the six divisions of Constellation Software. Juniper Group also owns software companies Juniper Travel, TPF Software, T4W, Airport Information Systems, and IST Cruise Technology. It also acquired Peakwork and Vervotech in 2023.
Juniper Group says it is “continuously acquiring, managing, and building” companies in industries including travel and aviation.
Spain-based Lleego says its platform allows travel sellers to complete search, ticketing, changes, and refunds.
Following the deal, the company is creating a new division called Juniper Flights by Lleego. It’s a merger of the Lleego tech along with Juniper’s booking engine, which the company says creates a more comprehensive flight distribution tech platform aimed at travel agencies, tour operators and other travel companies.
The plan now is to pursue global expansion, Juniper said.
SITA Acquires Asistm to Expand Airline Operations Business
SITA, the airline-owned tech provider for much of the air travel industry, in June acquired Asistm as part of a goal to expand its operations-as-a-service business.
Denmark-based Asistm offers services that allow airlines to outsource their operations control center (OCC), which oversees air traffic, ground handling, safety, and facility management.
Switzerland-based SITA provides tech for passenger management, baggage handling, airport tech, and more.
With new access to its own OCC, SITA says it can now closely monitor how clients interact with other tech it sells, with the goal of using that data to better optimize its products.
“By centralizing OCC services, we help airlines manage daily or peak operations more smoothly, providing a scalable solution for all sizes,” said David Lavorel, CEO of SITA, in a statement.
SITA earlier this year acquired Materna IPS, the passenger check-in software for airports and airlines.
Satisfi Labs Acquires Factoreal to Strengthen AI Chatbot
Satisfi Labs, a consumer-facing AI chatbot tool for client brands, says its acquisition of Factoreal will take its product to the next level.
Florida-based Satisfi Labs offers the AI chatbot to destination marketing organizations, ski resorts, ticketed events and attractions companies, entertainment venues, and more.
San Francisco-based Factoreal is a marketing tech platform focused on the sports and entertainment sectors. Clients include United Soccer League, Gwinnett Stripers, Chattanooga FC, Las Vegas Aviators, Mumbai City FC, and more.
Folding in the marketing tech allows Satisfi Labs to deploy personalized marketing campaigns through its chat tool, expanding on the existing capability of answering questions and completing transactions.
Factoreal will be integrated over the next year, Satisfi Labs said.
Smartvel Acquires Avuxi to Enhance Destination Content Tech
Smartvel, which provides destination content products, in September acquired Avuxi to enhance its existing tech.
Madrid-based Smartvel provides travel companies with multiple tech products that they can integrate into their own websites and offerings. Products include a tool for completing entry documents, destination content including travel guide and trip planners, and an AI-powered tool to share info on events and experiences.
London-based Avuxi analyzes geo-tagged data from multiple online sources to uncover highlights within cities and localities, including popular attractions, restaurants, and transport links. Travel sellers can integrate the product to provide better insights to consumers when shopping for bookings. Clients include Kayak, eDreams, Flight Centre, Priceline, Super.com, Sonder, TravelPerk, and others.
Smartvel acquired ArrivalGuides, whose former owners include Lonely Planet, in 2023.
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