Skyscanner is a search aggregator and travel agency based in Edinburgh, Scotland.[1] The site is available in over 30 languages and is used by 100 million people per month.[1][4] The company lets people research and book travel options for their trips, including flights, hotels and car hire.[1]
Company type | Subsidiary |
---|---|
Industry | Travel |
Founded | (2003[1] | )
Founders |
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Headquarters | , |
Key people |
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Revenue | £261 million (2016)[2] |
Number of employees | 1,200+ (2024)[3] |
Parent | Trip.com Group |
Website | skyscanner.com |
The company was formed in 2003[1] by three information technology professionals, Gareth Williams, Barry Smith, and Bonamy Grimes, after Gareth was frustrated by the difficulties of finding cheap flights to ski resorts.[5] Skyscanner was first developed and released in 2002.[citation needed] In 2003, the first employee was hired to assist with site development.[citation needed] The Edinburgh office was opened in 2004.[6]
In 2008, Skyscanner received first round funding of £2.5 million from venture capital firm Scottish Equity Partners (SEP).[7]
In 2009, the year after SEP invested in the business, Skyscanner reported its first profit.[8]
In 2011, Skyscanner acquired Zoombu.[9] Skyscanner opened an office in Singapore in September 2011, which is headquarters for its Asia-Pacific operations.[10] In 2012, a Beijing office was added, as Skyscanner began a partnership with Baidu, China's largest search engine.[11]
By 2013, the company employed over 180 people.[12] In February 2013, Skyscanner announced plans to open a United States base in Miami.[12] In October 2013, Sequoia Capital purchased an interest in Skyscanner that valued the company at $800 million.[13] In June 2014, Skyscanner acquired Youbibi, a travel search engine company based in Shenzhen, China.[14]
In October 2014, Skyscanner acquired the Budapest-based mobile app developer Distinction.[15]
By February 2015, the company employed 600 people, double the employment of 18 months earlier.[16]
In January 2016, the company raised $192 million based on a $1.6 billion valuation for the company.[17]
In November 2016, a Chinese company Trip.com Group (formerly Ctrip) bought Skyscanner for $1.75 billion.[18] Following the sale to Ctrip, Skyscanner's largest shareholder, SEP, completed its exit from the business.[19]
In 2017, Ctrip bought the Trip.com domain and launched Trip.com. The original platform became a subsidiary of Skyscanner.[20]
In 2020, after COVID-19 rocked the travel industry, the company announced that it would lay off 300 employees (20% of its staff). It was likely to close two offices in Budapest, Hungary and Sofia, Bulgaria.[21]
In 2022, Skyscanner partnered with Huawei to bring various travel services Huawei Mobile Services (HMS) and Petal Search and Petal Maps.[22]