Trip.com Acquires Thor's 24-Hour Service

Beefing up the human touch behind its online travel services, Trip.com acquired Thor Inc. to add round-the-clock agent support.

Beefing up the human touch behind its online travel services, Trip.com last month acquired Thor Inc., a provider of 24-hour telephone support services for travelers. The deal reflects a growing recognition among online travel companies that technology alone is not enough — that customers booking trips online still want access to a human being when things go wrong.

Trip.com, which has positioned itself as a technology-forward alternative to traditional travel agencies, is betting that the combination of web-based booking and round-the-clock agent support will give it a competitive edge over both pure-play online competitors and traditional agencies that have been slow to embrace the internet.

The acquisition also signals the beginning of a consolidation trend in the nascent online travel space, as companies with venture capital backing begin to snap up complementary services and capabilities. The race to build a full-service online travel platform is accelerating.