As Beijing glows over the naming of US Commerce Secretary Gary Locke as the first ethnic Chinese to become US ambassador to China, the nation’s struggling solar panel sector is more focused on Locke’s replacement, longtime California power industry executive John Bryson. President Obama reportedly hand-picked Bryson, chief executive of one of California’s top two power producers, in large part for his rich background in building and operating alternate energy generating facilities, even as much of the rest of the nation shies away from such plants despite attractive government incentives. Chinese media are saying that Bryson, with his strong ties to the power generating community, has been given a mandate to breathe new life into green energy production in the US, which, if successful, could mean a nice boost for  China’s solar panel makers who are now struggling with one of their worst-ever downturns as building of new solar plants worldwide slows with the fading of the global economic crisis. (English article) Bryson’s pending arrival seems to have helped Chinese solar stocks, which are up 5-10 percent over the last three weeks from their previous lows during the China sell-off on Wall Street. Even industry laggard LDK (NYSE: LDK) saw its shares get a nice lift, rising 5 percent on Monday after it announced a relatively modest $10 million share buyback. (company announcement) I wouldn’t be surprised to see Bryson bringing in some major new orders for the solar industry by the end of this year, which will probably benefit the US players most but should also help Chinese companies that supply over half the world’s current capacity. If the Chinese companies are smart, they should start looking for US partners in both the power and panel production space who can help them capitalize on new business likely to flow as Bryson gets down to work.

Bottom line: The naming of a solar energy booster with strong private sector ties as new US commerce secretary should provide a boost for the global solar panel sector in the next 12 months.

当中国还在为美国商务部长骆家辉被提名为首个华裔美国驻华大使而欢欣鼓舞时，中国苦苦挣扎的太阳能面板业的注意力则更多地放在了骆家辉的接替者–约翰•布兰森(John Bryson)身上。布兰森是加州最大的能源企业之一的董事长兼执行总裁。据报导，奥巴马提名布兰森为商务部长候选人在很大程度上是因为布兰森在创建和运营替代能源发电设施上有着丰富背景。尽管美国政府推出了诱人的刺激政策，但美国很多地区都对类似替代能源发电厂敬而远之。中国媒体报导称，在发电行业有着超强人脉的布兰森被赋予的一项重要任务就是，让美国的绿色能源生产焕发新生机。如果成功，这可能是对中国太阳能面板制造商的一次有利推动。随着全球经济危机的逐渐消散，在全球范围内修建新的太阳能发电厂的步伐逐步放缓，中国的太阳能面板制造商们正遭遇着业界最严重的不景气阶段之一。而布兰森即将走马上任的消息，给美国股市内的中国太阳能产业股带来了春风，在惨遭过去三周对中国概念股的抛售後，目前纷纷取得了5-10%不等的反弹，即便是业界的後进者——江西赛维LDK太阳能<LDK.N>的股价也上涨不少，在宣布了1,000万美元的股票回购计划後，赛维LDK的股价周一扬升5%。如果看到布兰森在今年年底前为太阳能产业带来某些新的重要订单，我并不会感到意外。受益最大的可能当属美国太阳能生产商，同时也有助於占世界光伏市场一半产能的中国企业。如果中国企业聪明的话，他们现在应开始在发电和面板生产领域，同时寻找一旦布兰森走马上任可能给他们带来新商机的美国合作。

一句话：奥巴马任命一位与民间太阳能行业关系密切的能源推动者出任美国商务部长，会在未来一年推动全球太阳能面板行业的发展。

Related postings 相关文章:

◙ Trina Doubles Warranty in Search of Sales 天合光能：延长产品质保年限以提振销售

◙ China Backs Solar Firms With Europe Financing 中国继续支持国内太阳能企业

◙ Beijing Warms Up Solar Sector 中国政府向太阳能产业伸出援手

After a wait of more than a year, Taiwan’s AU Optronics (Taipei: 2409) has finally won approval to produce state-of-the-art LCD panels in China, which it looks set to do by buying into an existing panel maker in the city of Kunshan near Shanghai, Chinese media are reporting. (English article; Chinese article) It’s been quite interesting to watch this race develop, which has seen the world’s top 4 panel makers, AU and hometown rival Chimei Innolux (Taipei: 3481), compete with the Korean pair of Samsung (Seoul: 005930) and LG Display (Seoul: 034220) to be first to build an 8.5-generation LCD plant in China. LG and Samsung have both already been approved to build their own Chinese plants, and in an interesting twist media reported in April that Samsung would take a 15 percent stake in domestic TV leader TCL’s (Shenzhen: 000001) 8.5-generation LCD plant in Shenzhen. AU’s tie-up with Kunshan Longfei — under which AU will take over management of the company — should help the Taiwanese company quickly regain any lost ground on LG Display and Samsung, which have to build up their production facilities from zero. The irony in all this is that LCD sales will probably start to slow in the next few years as more and more homes already have big-screen TVs, just as all the new Chinese production is hitting the market. That will make the race even more interesting, as whoever gets to market first will probably beat the glut, at least initially.

Bottom line: AU Optronics has gotten a slight lead on its Korean rivals in their race to build new LCD plants in China, though the sector faces a supply glut when all the new capacity comes online.

大陆媒体报导称，在沉寂了一年多之後，台湾友达<2409.TW>终於通过参股昆山龙飞光电，获得了在中国生产世界先进水平的LCD(液晶显示器)面板的许可。静观世界四大顶级面板商的竞争是一件很有意思的事。韩国三星电子<005930.KS>、LG Display<034220.KS>和台湾友达、奇美电子<3481.TW>均想率先在中国创建8.5代LCD面板生产厂。LG和三星电子早已获准在中国修建面板工厂，而中国媒体四月份则报导了一则有趣的新闻，三星将获得中国电视制造商TCL在深圳8.5代LCD面板厂15%的股份。台湾友达和龙飞光电的合作，应有助於友达迅速收复被LG和三星电子占领的失地，因後两者需从无到有创建他们的生产厂。而最讽刺的在於，当上述公司这些中国工厂的产品数年後投放市场之时，届时LCD的销量可能已呈现放缓之势，因为会有越来越多的家庭早已拥有大屏幕电视。因此这场争夺战变得更为有趣，因为谁先抢占市场，谁就有可能占领领跑优势，至少在初期是这样。

一句话：台湾友达在这场争夺最先在中国开设LCD面板厂的竞争中暂时领先于韩国竞争对手，不过当这些工厂的产品全面出货时，可能会面临着严重的供应过剩局面。

Related postings 相关文章:

◙ TCL Comeback Gains Momentum with Italy Deals TCL牵手意大利 复苏之势获动力

◙ TCL on the Comeback Trail With Samsung Tie-Up TCL与三星结盟 重振旗鼓

◙ China TV Makers Lack Right Stuff to Profit fom Sony Woes 索尼遭殃谁受益？

Search leader Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU) seems to be all over the headlines this past week, as it looks desperately for new areas that can contribute to its top and bottom-line growth for the day when its search business starts to slow, which may be sooner than many people think. In the biggest piece of news, Baidu has announced a $300 million investment in online travel site Qunar. (company announcement; English article) Honestly speaking, this investment doesn’t look too exciting, as the online travel services space is already dominated by well-established players Ctrip (Nasdaq: CTRP) and eLong (Nasdaq: LONG), as well as a number of smaller players with backing from big state-run travel firms. A quick view of the site is also quite underwhelming, as it doesn’t appear to offer anything that the others don’t already have and, accordingly, I wouldn’t expect to see too much return from this investment. Two other tie-ups that have made recent headlines will see Baiidu forming a strategic partnership with leading real estate service firm China Real Estate Investment Corp (Nasdaq: CRIC) (English article); and buying a 29 percent stake in online ratings service Lefbrain Technology. (English article) These two deals look slightly more interesting in that they are focused around Baidu’s core strength of organizing and providing Web-based information. If it plays these initiatives right, perhaps one might contribute to its future business. But the much larger travel investment looks suspiciously like some of its previous attempts outside its core area, such as forays into micro blogging and online retail that both ended up as duds that were later shut down.

Bottom line: Baidu’s new travel services foray looks like another dud investment outside its core search business, while recent real estate and ratings tie-ups could stand some chance of success.

在刚刚过去的这周，中国最大的网络搜索引擎百度<BIDU.O>似乎成为各大媒体的头条，因其亟需寻找新的增长领域，以弥补其搜索业务可能出现的疲软之势，而这一趋势的出现或许会比很多人想像的更早。其中一条最重头新闻是，百度将斥资3亿美元投资去哪儿网。说实话，这笔投资看起来没那麽令人兴奋，因为在线旅游服务市场已被携程<CTRP.O>和艺龙<LONG.O>等业界巨头以及一系列由国有旅行社支持的小企业所占领。我迅速浏览了一下去哪儿网站，发现它乏善可陈，因它与其他类似网站大同小异，并无特别之处，因此，我并不期望百度的这笔投资会带来可观回报。近期另外两条与百度有关的重磅新闻是：百度与中国房产信息集团<CRIC.O>达成战略夥伴关系，以及百度收购了垂直互联网企业莱富特佰 29%的股权。这两项交易似乎稍微有趣一点，因它们聚焦于百度整合和提供网络信息的核心力量。如果百度能正确运营这两个项目，或许其中一个确将有助於百度未来的业务发展。但对去哪儿网的高额投资则前景可疑，正如百度之前曾涉足某些与其核心业务关系不大的领域，例如进军微博和在线零售行业，但这两笔投资最终都不了了之。
一句话：百度进军旅游业的新举动似乎又是一笔与其核心业务无关的无用投资，而与中国房产信息集团和莱富特佰的合作或许尚有胜算的机会。

Related postings 相关文章:

◙ Baidu’s Latest Botch: Microblogging 百度“微博”的倒掉

◙ Baidu’s Li Under Assault in Media Spotlight 百度李彦宏遭媒体炮轰

◙ Baidu: Tidbits But Still No Search Alternatives 百度：干扰不断

There are a couple of interesting items in the media these last few days regarding cars, as automakers look desperately for any good news to jump-start sales that have slowed dramatically as Beijing looks to cool the economy and also ease traffic congestion. In the end, most of the hopes are destined for disappointment, as clearly economic cooling and making big city roads passable are clearly more important for China’s long-term welfare and thus will receive priority. But let’s get to the news. Perhaps most important were media reports late last week saying Beijing, under pressure from automakers alarmed by slowing sales, was considering putting the brakes on a national program to ease congestion by limiting the number of new license plates issued in major cities. (English article) This would follow the introduction of such a system earlier this year in Beijing, which presumably will be copied by other big cities in the near future. Anyone who lives in China knows that traffic in its major cities is near gridlock, thanks in large part to China’s economic incentives that encouraged huge numbers of consumers to buy cars during the global economic crisis. Pressure from automakers may be big, but I’m personally convinced that China has made up its mind on this issue and will push forward with measures to ease congestion on a national basis. In a second interesting tidbit, Volkswagen, in a bid to ease its dependence on new car sales, has just launched a used car-selling business here in China, called Das WeltAuto. (English article) While this concept sounds quite interesting and similar ventures have done quite well in mature markets like the US, I’m convinced it’s destined to stall out quickly in China. The reason is simple:  Chinese love new things, and second-hand anything is always an option of last resort.

Bottom line: China’s auto industry is set for a long-term period of slow growth and perhaps even some shrinkage, as Beijing focuses on easing congestion and pollution in its major cities.

过去几天中，媒体报导了几则关於汽车业的趣事儿。汽车制造商们正急切找寻任何可以推动销售的好消息，因中国政府的经济降温举措和缓解交通拥堵的政策令汽车销售大幅下滑。但汽车制造商的多数希望注定会落空，因为很明显，为经济降温和让大城市交通通畅对中国的长期利益更为重要。让我们先看两则新闻。可能最重要的就是媒体上周报导的，受业绩下滑的汽车制造商的压力，中国政府正考虑放宽在全国主要城市限购汽车的政策。今年早些时候，北京开始实施这一政策，想必其他大城市也会在不久的将来如法炮制。生活在中国的人都知道，中国大城市的道路交通经常陷於瘫痪，这在很大程度上要归咎於中国在全球经济危机期间实施的鼓励购车政策。尽管来自汽车制造商的压力可能很大，但我个人认为，中国政府在舒缓道路拥堵的问题上已下定决心，将会在全国范围内继续推行缓解交通压力的举措。第二则趣闻是，为缓解自己对新车销售的依赖，大众汽车刚刚在中国推出了名为Das WeltAuto的二手车销售业务。尽管这个概念听起来很有趣，且类似行动在美国等成熟市场进行得相当顺利，但我相信，这个计划注定会在中国迅速流产。理由很简单：中国人喜欢新东西，买二手货总是下下策。

一句话：因中国政府聚焦于缓解大城市的交通拥堵和环境污染问题，中国的汽车业注定会经历长期的缓慢发展，甚至会出现某些倒退。

Related postings 相关文章:

◙ Autos: Good Times Screech to a Halt 中国汽车业：当繁荣已成往事

◙ Beijing Money Shut-Off Reaches a Roar, Real Estate Suffers 银行贷款下降 房地产市场受压

◙ VW Motors into South China on Beijing Own-Brand Drive 大众汽车“南方战略”加速

I’ve probably written perhaps a bit too much about Google’s (Nasdaq: GOOG) ongoing clash with China  over its mapping service, but in this instance I think the case merits the extra attention because 1) this is Google and China we’re talking about, and 2) the case has much broader implications for China’s future approach towards the Internet, which appears to be growing more flexible. Chinese media are reporting that a Google joint venture that would include its China mapping business has officially received government approval, paving the way for the venture to be licensed and for Google to keep operating the service under new rules that require such licensing. (Chinese article) Many will recall that this impasse dates back to the spring, when Google failed to submit a license application before a state-mandated deadline, leading many, including myself, to predict its imminent withdrawal from the market. (previous post) But clearly both Google and Beijing were eager to avoid another high-profile clash similar to the one that made global headlines last year when Google ended up withdrawing from the China search market over objections to Beijing’s strict rules on self-censorship. In this case, the sticking point appears to have been the requirement that foreigners could only participate in China’s online mapping space via joint ventures. But after months of talks, the two sides reached a compromise that saw Google adhere to the joint venture rule in principal while effectively keeping control of the service by owning the big majority of the joint venture’s shares. This new willingness by Beijing to compromise will come as welcome news to foreign Web firms, giving them flexibility to follow China’s tough rules while also doing what makes business and moral sense for them from a broader global perspective. Chinese firms could also benefit in the long run, as they can ride on the coattails of newer more flexible precedents set down by the big foreign players.

Bottom line: Beijing and Google’s compromise over Google’s map service marks the beginning of a more flexible approach by China to its heavy-handed regulation of the Internet.

我可能写了太多有关谷歌<GOOG.O>中国地图服务争端的文章，但这一次的情况值得我们给予更多关注。因为首先，这是谷歌和中国之间的事；其次，这对中国未来如何对待互联网有着重要影响，而中国对互联网企业的态度似乎正变得更有弹性。据中国媒体报导，提供谷歌地图服务的一家谷歌合资公司已得到政府正式批准，这为谷歌拿到中国地图业务牌照，继续在新规则下开展该业务铺平了道路。很多人还记得，谷歌与中国的争执开始于春季，当时谷歌未能在规定的截止日期前提交牌照申请，让包括我在内的很多人都觉得，谷歌即将退出这块市场。但显而易见的是，谷歌和中国政府都不想把事情弄大，不想重复去年谷歌高调退出中国搜索引擎市场时的局面。在地图服务方面，中国政府要求，外国企业只能通过合资公司提供地图服务。但经历了几个月的谈判後，谷歌和中国政府都做出了让步，谷歌原则上同意中国的要求，但谷歌通过持有合资企业大部分股份，实际上依然掌控着这项业务。北京新表现出的妥协意愿对外国网络公司来说可是好消息，这让他们可以灵活地遵守中国的严格制度，同时还能按照国际道德标准做生意。长期看来，中国企业也会从外国公司提供的先例中受益。

一句话：中国政府和谷歌在地图服务方面做出的妥协，标志着中国政府开始对一向严密控制的互联网采取灵活对待策略。

Related postings 相关文章:

◙ Google’s China Map Crisis Near Resolution 谷歌中国地图争端接近解决

◙ Google, China Seeking Map Compromise 谷歌与中国寻求妥协

◙ Google Falling Off The China Map 谷歌地图：谈判也没用

The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on June 25-27. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.

══════════════════════════════════════════════════════

◙ Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU) to Buy Majority of Travel Site Qunar for $306 Million (English article)

◙ Google (Nasdaq: GOOG) China JV Approved, Averts Map Licensing Impasse (Chinese article)

◙ AU Optronics (Taipei: 2409) to Acquire 49% Stake in Longfei Optical (English article)

◙ Chinese Automakers Rise on Report Agencies Seeking to Ease Purchase Curbs (English article)

◙ ReneSola (NYSE: SOL) Announces Management Appointments (PRNewswire)

◙ Capgemini (Paris: CAP) Completes Its First Acquisition in China: Praxis Technology (Businesswire)

Chinese TV program and movie makers, who often struggle just to survive due to rampant piracy and monopoly market conditions that constrain their ability to sell products, may be on the cusp of a golden age thanks to a new benefactor: the Internet. Chinese media are reporting that programming makers speaking at Shanghai’s annual film festival said the market has suddenly exploded for their product from a growing crop of content-hungry video sharing sites such as Youku (NYSE: YOKU), Tudou, Xunlei and Tencent (HKEx: 700). (English article) According to the reports, single episodes of the most popular TV shows can now fetch as much as 600,000 yuan apiece — a nice sum and certainly welcome news for program makers like Huayi Brothers (Shenzhen: 300027), which often have difficulty finding cash just to finance their next venture. The development seems to already be sparking some activity in the program-making arena, with Tencent buying a 4.6 percent stake in Huayi earlier this year (previous post), and Baidu’s (Nasdaq: BIDU) Qiyi video joint venture announcing just this week its production arm would produce four variety shows  and one movie this year. (English article) The trend could help to fuel the rise of a new wave of independent production houses, and should also come as good news for global media giants like News Corp (Nasdaq: NWSA) and Disney (NYSE: DIS), as well as Hong Kong leader Television Broadcasts (HKEx: 511), which have been trying to figure out for years how to make money in China. Of course, the coming renaissance could also run out of steam if the online video sector  consolidates, which seems inevitable. But for now, it’s certainly showtime for China’s long under-appreciated TV and movie makers.

Bottom line: TV program and movie makers in China are poised to see business boom on growing demand from online video sites.

由於中国盗版猖獗和市场垄断，国内的电视和电影制片商销售能力受限，往往仅为生存挣扎。但由於视频网站的崛起，这些制片商或即将迎来黄金时期。据中国媒体报导，制片商在上海国际电影节上表示，优酷<YOKU.N>、土豆、迅雷和腾讯<0700.HK>等视频分享网站对内容的需求呈爆发性增长。报导称，对於最受欢迎的电视剧，目前单集售价已高达60万元，如此可观的收入自然令华谊兄弟<300027.SZ>等制片商喜出望外，因为他们经常为投资下部作品的资金来源发愁。这一变化似乎已经引发制片领域的一些商业动作，如腾讯今年早些时候购买了华谊4.6%的股权，百度<BIDU.O>旗下的奇艺视频合资企业本周宣布，其制片团队今年将推出四档综艺节目和一部电影。这还将催生一批独立制片工作室，对新闻集团<NWSA.O> 、迪士尼<DIS.N>等全球媒体巨头和香港电视广播有限公司<0511.HK>来说也不失为好消息，因这些公司多年来一直在探索如何在中国大陆市场赚钱。当然，如果在线视频网站领域出现整合——这似乎是不可避免的——制片商的好日子也可能会到头。但目前来看，长期被低估的中国电视和电影制片商势必要赢来一段黄金时期。

一句话：由於中国在线视频网站对内容的需求增长，国内电视和电影制片商势必会迎来一波黄金商机。

Related postings 相关文章:

◙ Tencent Looks to the Stars to Power Video Dreams 腾讯借力华谊 进军网络视频领域

◙ Youku: Mixed Results Make Management Confident 优酷业绩喜忧参半管理层仍雄心勃勃

◙ Tudou: Back on the IPO Trail 土豆：重回IPO轨道

Phoenix New Media (Nasdaq: FENG) has just published its inaugural quarterly results since going public in May, and while the top line looks encouraging the middle seems a bit cost-heavy and potentially worrisome. (results announcement) As I’ve said in the past, I really like this company in terms of its overall market position, as it occupies a prominent space in the higher-growth and less regulated new media space while also boasting strong connections to traditional media through its parent, Phoenix Broadcasting Satellite Television (HKEx: 2008). I’ll start with the good news, which is that Phoenix New Media’s revenue grew an impressive 77 percent for the quarter year-on-year, led by a doubling in advertising revenue. The company also seems to be moving aggressively into the mobile space, which is definitely where media is moving these days, as evidenced by the many people I see reading news off their mobile phones on the Shanghai subways. The more worrisome news lies in costs, which Phoenix New Media doesn’t seem to be controlling too well. Operating expenses nearly tripled for the quarter, and stock option related costs ballooned, no doubt related to the IPO. The result was that adjusted profit, excluding stock option-related costs, grew just 25 percent for the quarter, while on a net basis the company actually reported a large loss. Investors are clearly concerned about the costs issue, with Phoenix shares now down nearly 20 percent from their IPO price from last month after an initial 34 percent jump on their trading debut. Investors will no doubt be keeping their eye on costs in the months ahead to see if Phoenix can really soar into the top ranks of China’s new media realm.

Bottom line: Phoenix New Media is showing strong potential in the Chinese new media space, but needs to control its costs or risk getting punished by investors.

凤凰新媒体<FENG.N>刚公布5月份上市以来的首份季度财报，虽然营收不错，但其他部分看起来有点堪忧。就像我以前说的，考虑到其整体市场定位，我真的很喜欢这家公司，因为它在高速增长、且监管较少的新媒体行业，占据了重要位置，而且还通过其母公司凤凰卫视<2008.HK>与传统媒体保持着强劲联系。我先说好消息，那就是凤凰新媒体的季度营收同比增加了77%颇为不俗，其中广告收入增加了一倍。凤凰新媒体还打算积极进军移动领域，而这毋庸置疑正是媒体行业的前进方向，从我在上海地铁里看到很多人用手机阅读新闻这一点，就可见一斑。但让人担心的是成本，这一点凤凰新媒体控制的不是太好。该季度运营成本达到原来数字的近三倍，而与股票期权相关的成本飙升，毫无疑问是与IPO一事相关。财报里显示的调整後的利润，排除了股票期权相关成本，增长仅为25%，而公司实际净利润则有严重亏损。投资者很关心成本问题，凤凰股价也较IPO价格下跌了将近20%。投资者肯定会依然很关注凤凰的成本问题，观察凤凰是否可以跻身中国一流的新媒体阵营。

一句话：凤凰新媒体在中国新媒体领域展现出了强大潜力，但需要控制成本或风险。

Related postings 相关文章:

◙ Phoenix New Media Comes Back to Earth 凤凰“落地”

◙ Phoenix Media Sets Eyes on US Investors 凤凰新媒体寻求美国上市

◙ Phoenix Wings Getting Clipped?

I’m not shareholder in Ctrip.com (Nasdaq: CTRP), but I’m certainly a big fan of just about everything this company does, including its numerous new business initiatives that all seem well thought out and positioned to capitalize on its position as one of China’s leading travel services companies. In one of its newer such moves, which actually began 2 years ago but now seems to be picking up steam, Ctrip is developing its own Starway hotel alliance, bringing together independent hotels under a single banner to better help them attract business and provide service under a set of uniform standards. This kind of alliance is similar to the Best Western brand in the US, and is a very convenient way for independent hotel owners, who otherwise wouldn’t have much chance at attracting customers, to unite under a single name and market themselves collectively. A recent domestic media report says the Starway brand now has about 120 hotels nationwide, and Ctrip has also recently launched a more upscale version, Starway Premier, for better quality independent hotels. (English article) This kind of initiative should provide new revenues for Ctrip in a number of ways, from franchise and management fees to actual booking fees when travelers book rooms at these hotels on Ctrip’s system. This kind of initiative follows other creative ones in the group buying (previous post) and restaurant (previous post) spaces, all playing to Ctrip’s core strength, and providing new sources of revenue to keep the company growth.

Bottom line: Ctrip’s Starway hotel brand management initiative is yet another smart campaign by this travel services leader in its search for new revenues drawing on its core strength.

我不是携程<CTRP.O>的股东，但我是这家公司的铁杆粉丝。作为中国领先的旅游服务商，携程推出的很多服务创意都很棒。其最新推出的一个创意——实际上两年前就开始了，但最近才火起来，携程推出自有品牌–星程连锁酒店，把很多独立的小旅店整合起来，更好地吸引顾客，提供统一标准的服务。这与美国的 Best Western品牌很像，而且给独立的酒店业主提供了很大的方便，因为这些酒店业主不会有什麽机会联合起来一起做市场推广活动。最近的国内媒体报导，星程品牌目前在全国拥有了120家门店，携程最近还推出了一个更高端的品牌–星程精品，提供更好的服务。这从很多方面会给携程带来新的收入来源，如特许经营费，管理费用，订房费用等。此前携程也在购物和餐饮方面推出了很多业务创意，这都发挥了携程的核心优势，给携程提供了新的收入来源。

一句话：携程的星程酒店品牌管理计划，是携程在寻找新收入来源，发挥核心优势方面做出的又一聪明之举。

Related postings 相关文章:

◙ Ctrip Makes Smart Trip Into Group Buying 携程也推团购：不仅只是赶时髦

◙ Ctrip Finds Growth Recipe in Restaurants 携程：进军在线订餐

◙ Home Inns: Expo Hangover 如家进入平稳期