Top Chinese OTA eLong announced the appointment of Mr. Hao Jiang as its Chief Executive Officer, effective July 8, 2015. eLong also announced that Mr. Guangfu Cui, its former Chief Executive Officer, will continue to provide services as a consultant.
Mr. Jiang was appointed by the Company's Board of Directors to serve as Chief Executive Officer after an extensive search of potential candidates and careful consideration of Mr. Jiang's qualifications, including his extensive experience in and deep knowledge of China's online travel industry, and expertise in product development and software. Mr. Jiang graduated from Shanghai Jiaotong University with a Bachelor of Science degree.
As a leader in mobile and online accommodations reservations in China， eLong offers consumers a network of approximately 510,000 properties worldwide. eLong technology enables travelers to book hotels, guesthouses, apartments and other accommodations, as well as air and train tickets, through convenient mobile and tablet applications, websites, 24 hour customer service, and easy to use tools such as destination guides, maps and user reviews.
Back in May, Expedia has sold its 62.4% majority stake in eLong to several purchasers based in China, including Ctrip.com, Keystone Lodging Holdings Limited, Plateno Group Limited and Luxuriant Holdings Limited for a total purchase price of approximately $671 million.
Expedia and Ctrip also agreed to cooperate with each other to allow their respective customers to benefit from certain travel product offerings for specified geographic markets meaning that Expedia will no longer compete in China via eLong.
