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<ul><li><keyword id="2808667" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="OYO">OYO</keyword> is buying @Leisure from <keyword id="420697" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Axel-Springer">Axel Springer</keyword>, the media and technology company, for $415 million. </li><li>This will add 300,000 rooms to OYO’s list.</li><li>Vacation homes are becoming a big part of OYO’s strategy, after having launched OYO Homes in 2017.</li></ul>From a unicorn in 2018 to becoming a global hotel chain, Indian hospitality <keyword id="138263" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="startup">startup</keyword> OYO <keyword id="6368036" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="hotels">Hotels</keyword> &amp; Homes has achieved a lot within a year. Now, OYO is once again in the news for having acquired Amsterdam-based <keyword id="7586774" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Leisure-Group">@Leisure Group</keyword> of hotels. OYO is buying @Leisure from Axel Springer, the media and technology company, for $415 million. The acquisition marks an important step in OYO’s journey, as this becomes one of the biggest acquisitions done by an Indian startup in the global arena. With the acquisition, OYO will now have @Leisure’s more than 30,000-fully managed holiday homes across 13 countries in Europe and a subscription-based home management service with over 85,000 homes across 50 countries. This will add 300,000 rooms to OYO’s list. OYO has 175,000+ rooms in India, whereas in China it has 322,000+ rooms and in the rest of the world put together, it is adding 60,000 rooms every month. In India, over 15 cities have 200 OYO hotels per city. “If one were to look at Europe alone, there is an ever-increasing demand for vacation homes with an increasing trend of booking an entire home. Through this acquisition, the size and scale of the opportunity can be immediately unlocked for OYO’s Homes business. Today, more than 2.8 mn holidaymakers from over 118 countries book their holiday every year with @Leisure Group. The combined strength of both brands can scale the opportunity multifold,” said OYO’s Global Chief Strategy Officer, Maninder Gulati. Vacation homes are becoming a big part of OYO’s strategy – it had launched OYO Homes in 2017. OYO Homes already has over 15,000 villas and apartment units globally. Global expansion mode In a bid to become the world’s largest hotel chain (OYO currently holds the 6th position), OYO has been fast expanding its businesses in India and globally. In 2017, OYO had entered the China market and rapidly expanded to be one of the biggest hotel chains in the country. In fact, OYO has more rooms to offer in China than it does in india. Earlier in 2019, OYO announced its partnership with Japan-based SoftBank Corp and the SoftBank Vision fund to launch a new venture called Oyo Hotels Japan. It had also started a housing rental service in Japan called Oyo Life. The company also has a presence in Indonesian, European and Sri Lankan markets. In September 2018, OYO had opened its signature OYO townhouses in London. See Also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/oyo-upgrades-its-app-for-hotel-owners-and-offers-financing-marketing-support-and-timely-payments/articleshow/68940755.cms">OYO upgrades its app for hotel owners and offers financing, marketing support and timely payments</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/oyo-partners-with-softbank-to-launch-oyo-hotels-japan/articleshow/68719436.cms">OYO partners with Softbank to create a joint venture for its Japan business</a>

OYO's $415 million acquisition of Amsterdam-based holiday home chain part of plan to become the world's largest hotel company

New Delhi, Dec 2 () Hospitality firm OYO on Monday said it has elevated Aditya Ghosh, currently chief executive officer (India &amp; South Asia) for the hotels and homes business, as a member of its board of directors.
 Rohit Kapoor, currently CEO of the new real estate businesses of the company, has been appointed as CEO (India &amp; South Asia) for OYO Hotels &amp; Homes, it added.
 Ghosh will join OYO Hotels &amp; Homes founder &amp; Group CEO Ritesh Agarwal, Baja Corporation founder &amp; CEO Betsy Atkins and other industry experts like Munish Varma, Bejul Somaia and Mohit Bhatnagar, among others, on the company's board, OYO Hotels &amp; Homes said in a statement.
 In his role on the board, Ghosh will focus on five key areas namely, safety and security, customer experience, corporate governance, revenue management and stakeholder communications, the statement said.
 "Ghosh's strong business acumen, problem-solving capabilities, passion for building an organisation with strong corporate governance and a high-performing work culture that thrives on principles of diversity and inclusion, make him the perfect choice for this larger and more strategic role, at a global level," OYO Hotels &amp; Homes founder &amp; Group CEO Ritesh Agarwal said.
 The decision will help OYO achieve its goals globally, he added.
 On the appointment, Ghosh said, "I am thankful to the board for inviting me into the august group to further build OYO as a global brand to reckon with, by not just growing fast, but growing right."
 Ghosh and Kapoor will "work closely through the coming month to enable a smooth and seamless transition", the statement said.
 Rohit's remit will now also span the operations of over 18,000 hotels across over 500 cities in India and South Asia, it added. AKT HRS

OYO elevates India & South Asia CEO Aditya Ghosh to board of directors

<ul><li>OYO founder <keyword id="1670338" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ritesh-Agarwal">Ritesh Agarwal</keyword> was recently booked in a cheating case by a hotel owner in Bengaluru. </li><li>But there have been multiple such incidents across the country. </li><li>In the US too, OYO has been facing similar issues.</li></ul>OYO Hotels &amp; Homes, the Indian unicorn that has gone global seems to be going through a bad time. Founded by Ritesh Agarwal, OYO is on its way to hit its ambitious target of being the world’s largest hotel chain. It helps that they are already South Asia’s largest hotel chain by the number of rooms. OYO also recently launched OYO Partner Engagement Network (OPEN) through which it set up four regional Partner Advisory Councils which “provides a platform to discuss and determine micro and macro issues driving the future of hospitality in India”. Yet the past few months have been turbulent. From multiple FIRs to an uprising from hotel owners, OYO is now dealing with multiple cases. Cheating case against Agarwal and others Recently, a Bengaluru <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/small-biz/startups/newsbuzz/cheating-case-against-oyo-founder-ritesh-agarwal-6-others/articleshow/71905131.cms">hotelier</a> filed a cheating case against Agarwal and six others claiming that the OYO hasn’t paid him his dues. According to the complaint, the hotelier has claimed that OYO was supposed to pay him ₹7 lakh a month for room bookings but failed to do so since May 2019. "Our lawyers are looking into the matter and will be taking strong legal action as these claims are incorrect and defamatory in nature. OYO Hotels &amp; Homes will initiate appropriate criminal proceedings against the Bengaluru owner who is sensationalising a civil dispute to attract attention. On studying a similar matter where an FIR was wrongfully filed in September, the honourable Karnataka High Court recently stayed the adverse actions via an injunction in Bengaluru. We, therefore, have strong reasons to repose our faith in the justice system," said a statement from OYO. OYO also claims to have an annual retention as high as 99.5% across the chain in India &amp; South Asia. Incidents at OYO Hotels Recently, a national level shooter was found dead in an OYO hotel reportedly due to electrocution. On the other hand, an employee in a Gurugram-based OYO hotel was also accused of <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/small-biz/startups/newsbuzz/electrocution-case-oyo-says-it-is-cooperating-with-police-authorities/articleshow/71607725.cms">raping</a> a guest. In both cases, OYO has said that it is working with the authorities and helping with the investigation. Hotel owners’ rising rage Hotel partners have been raising their concerns about OYO for quite some time now, with some even calling it the <a href="https://www.firstpost.com/business/hotel-operators-who-partnered-with-oyo-call-it-biggest-online-fraud-demand-criminal-probe-against-softbank-backed-startup-7462021.html">‘biggest online fraud’.</a> Multiple protests have also been organised by hoteliers against OYO across the country. Most of the protests have been about clearance of dues. Another point <a href="https://www.businesstoday.in/current/corporate/as-softbank-oyo-booms-over-10000-hotels-cry-foul-and-check-out/story/383337.html">raised by hotel owners</a> has been that while OYO charges 20% franchise fee on room revenues, it ultimately takes more money through different sources that aren’t disclosed initially. Trouble in America too OYO, after having had a great run in China, also expanded to the US. It has even taken over a Hooters hotel in Las Vegas and rebranded it to be an OYO hotel. US-based media outlet <a href="https://skift.com/2019/10/24/budget-chain-oyo-can-be-a-nightmare-for-u-s-hotel-operators-despite-its-hype/">Skift</a> has reported that several hotel owners complained that OYO’s partner management system didn’t work properly along with non payment of dues. CCI investigation MakeMyTrip and Oyo’s commercial agreement is being investigated by the Competition Commission of India. The alleged dominance that they would enjoy is now under scanner. And prima facie, MakeMyTrip is identified as ‘dominant’ in the online travel market while OYO holds the same position in the hotels market. The joint effect of their partnership could alter the way the market operates. “OYO has been prima facie found to be a significant player in the ‘market for franchising services for budget hotels in India,” said the report. See Also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/why-makemytrip-and-oyo-are-in-trouble-with-the-cci/articleshow/71818051.cms">MakeMyTrip and Oyo are in trouble with the CCI, opening up a gray area for business partnerships in India</a>

Dues, death and an investigation — all that went wrong with OYO hotels in the last 6 months

<ul><li>Oyo has received an undisclosed amount of funding from <keyword id="719382" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Airbnb">Airbnb</keyword> in a series E round. </li><li>The strategic investment will see both Oyo and Airbnb collaborate on various projects. </li><li><keyword id="2550719" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="OYO-Rooms">Oyo Rooms</keyword> had also announced its home rental service in Japan on Monday.</li></ul>US-based home renting startup AirBnB has reportedly picked up a stake in Oyo Rooms. In a series E funding whose details are undisclosed, AirBnB has invested in the Indian hospitality unicorn. According to earlier <a href="https://www.businesstoday.in/current/corporate/airbnb-in-talks-to-invest-100-200-million-in-oyo-report/story/329283.html">reports</a>, AirBnB had been looking at investing anywhere between $100 million-$200 million in the Indian startup. “As the 6th largest hotel chain operator in the world, we at, OYO Hotels &amp; Homes, are committed to offering our guests and travelers around the world, great quality living spaces. We are happy to have Airbnb as our partner in this vision,” said Maninder Gulati, Global Chief Strategy Officer at OYO Hotels &amp; Homes. Gulati further said that Airbnb’s strong global footprints and access to local communities will open up new opportunities for OYO Hotels &amp; Homes to strengthen and grow while staying true to our core value proposition. According to sources, the funding development from Airbnb comes as a strategic <keyword id="7485728" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Investment-in-OYO">investment in Oyo</keyword>. Both Oyo and Airbnb are looking at opportunities to collaborate on a range of projects, including making OYO accommodations available on the Airbnb platform. “India has approximately 410 million millennials, that’s more than the entire population of the US. This group increasingly makes up for the dominant segment of consumers and is looking for new and authentic travel experiences. We are working towards achieving 1 billion Airbnb users in the next 10 years and India will play an important role in helping us achieve that goal,” Nathan Blecharczyk, co-founder of Airbnb had told Business Insider on March 13. Oyo Rooms has been growing at a fast rate, expanding its business territories beyond India. Having successfully expanded in China and several South East Asian markets, on Monday, Oyo also announced that it’s expanding in Japan with Oyo Life – an apartment rental service. An official statement from the company said that the company has already received over 11,000+ pre-registrations and has touched an occupancy of over 114% at the time of launch itself. See Also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/former-indigo-chief-is-aiming-to-make-the-6-year-old-oyo-the-worlds-largest-hotel-chain/articleshow/67536612.cms">A 6-year-old Indian startup wants to be world’s biggest hotel chain</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/exclusive-airbnb-may-defer-its-ipo-plan/articleshow/68392360.cms">'We have not decided if we will go public in 2019': Airbnb cofounder hints at IPO timing</a>

Airbnb picks up a stake in its Indian rival Oyo Rooms

<ul><li>With COVID-19 impacting the hospitality industry, bringing revenues down to almost zero, to now the steady recovery of the industry, there’s a lot that has happened through the course of the year. </li><li>Hospitality was one of the worst affected industries worldwide, however, with cities unlocking and global restrictions easing gradually, India topped the charts for OYO as the most booked country.</li><li>As OYO launches its annual Travelopedia, Rohit Kapoor, CEO, <keyword id="7036155" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="OYO-Hotels-Homes">OYO Hotels &amp; Homes</keyword>, India &amp; South Asia tells us about India's favourite tourist hotspots, COVID-19 impact on OYO, <keyword id="10519936" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="travel-sentiment">travel sentiment</keyword> this year and some trends he expects to see in 2021. </li></ul>2020 has been a unique year that pushed every brand and industry to transform itself. While it started on a good note for the hospitality industry, with January 2020 (pre-covid) being the most travelled month, April 2020 witnessed most cancellations across the country owing to the government’s precautionary lockdown. Hospitality was one of the worst affected industries worldwide. The grinding halt on travel and tourism impacted home-grown hospitality brand OYO by bringing its revenue down to zero levels during the lockdown. However, with cities unlocking and global restrictions easing gradually, India topped the charts for OYO as the most booked country while Delhi clocked in the most bookings across the world in 2020. Consumer confidence was at its highest during December 2020 as OYO saw the highest number of bookings since India unlocked. Today, Ritesh Agarwal’s OYO has reached ~45% of pre-COVID occupancy levels and its used room nights have grown steadily 40% m-o-m since bottoming out in May. Some of the brands are performing much better with <keyword id="4100346" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Oyo-Townhouse">OYO Townhouse</keyword> operating at 85% of pre-COVID occupancy levels. An OYO Hotel in Shahjahanpur and another in Chennai witnessed an average occupancy of 100% since lockdown. Over 8.5 million new user bookings were made on the OYO app and website in 2020. We caught up with Rohit Kapoor, CEO, OYO - India &amp; South Asia to discuss some of the key trends that came out in its third annual report - OYO Travelopedia 2020. <div type="Video" msid="80040904" hostid="261" title="Rohit Kapoor of OYO hotels and homes on India’s favourite travel hotspots and trends to be expected in 2021" dataSource="BUSINESSINSIDER" thumbUrl="https://denmark.timesinternet.in/cmslite/api/app/images.jpg?msid=80040904"></div> Lockdown’s impact A month down into the nation-wide lockdown, OYO realised that the macro factors cannot be controlled. As the hospitality industry came to a complete halt till the end of June, OYO decided to focus on improving its consumers and stakeholders’ pain points. It also wanted to use its space smartly by giving back to the society. It offered a helping hand to various hospitals and their doctors across the country. “After a few consumers started showing interest in travel, we launched an extensive campaign across the country to get in touch with our partners and stay in very close touch with our consumers. We tried to identify what consumers were thinking, some problems they were facing and what we could do to solve them. We worked with 24+ state ministries, 50+ government and private hospitals and hosted about a 250,000+ hospital staff and asymptomatic patients during the lockdown. 200+ sailors were safely quarantined at OYOs across India. 1,50,000 litres of disinfectant and 70,000 litres of sanitisers were used since April to welcome our guests,” shared Kapoor. OYO also on-boarded Sonu Sood as its brand ambassador, who emerged as a knight in shining armour and has been applauded for his humanitarian work to send thousands of stranded migrants back home during the lockdown. It launched a nation-wide campaign with Sood to woo its consumers. <div type="Youtube" id="ijSg92O1d30" title="OYO Sanitised Before Your Eyes" thumbUrl="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/ijSg92O1d30/mqdefault.jpg"></div> When Vande Bharat started, approximately 73,000 repatriated Indians completed their institutional quarantine at OYOs across India. Amongst these, most bookings were made by guests travelling from the Middle East, primarily UAE, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Kuwait and Qatar. Insights from OYO’s Travelopedia According to Kapoor’s predictions based on travelopedia’s insights, leisure travel is making a steady comeback - with tourist hotspots of Visakhapatnam, Kochi, Tirupati, Goa, Mussoorie recovering faster than other destinations. The data also revealed that Delhi, Bangalore and Hyderabad ranked as the most popular cities among business travellers while Jaipur, Goa, Kochi were travellers’ favourite domestic leisure hotspots. <div type="image" title="Oyo travelopedia" msid="80040415" hostid="261"></div> Speaking on one of the most important trends this year for OYO, Kapoor said, “One of the most humbling things we found out that has stayed with me is that a guest has stayed with us 128 times this year, something that tells us that we are on the right path and that our customers have immense faith in us even in tough times. While 2021 will be a new learning in itself, we’re hopeful that the changes we have brought in 2020 will set new precedents in the travel and hospitality sector and we are completely motivated to work towards providing safe stays to all our customers.” We're at that time of the year when people normally are in the mood to travel. Across India, without any surprise, the tourist hotspot of Goa emerged as the most booked beach destination, followed by Kochi, Vizag and Pondicherry. To target these beach-lovers, OYO also launched a campaign earlier this month titled ‘Chalo Beach Chalein.’ <div type="Youtube" id="6W_9U2C7G30" title="OYO | Chal Beach Chalein" thumbUrl="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/6W_9U2C7G30/mqdefault.jpg"></div> Interestingly, OYO has also seen a resurgence in religious tourism. Puri emerged as India’s top pilgrimage destination, followed by Vrindavan, Tirupati, Shirdi, and Varanasi. In December 2020, over 17 lakh people checked-in over the weekends. December 12, 2020 saw the most number of bookings (so far). The next estimated date is December 31, 2020 (bookings still coming in) Telling us how December turned out for OYO, Kapoor said, “This month, people are traveling to places they wouldn’t have thought of visiting earlier. For example, many of our users have shown interest in Mukteshwar, Ramgad or Bhimtal. Plus, one big change for everyone is that during this part of the year, people travel to international locations -- that’s not happening this year. That demand is getting funnelled to domestic markets and that is a trend I foresee continuing for at least 12 more months.” Kapoor has been traveling himself to locations he wouldn’t have been to otherwise. He has been to Jaipur and Udaipur with his family, then he went to Ramgad and worked from there for 15 days. He has also been on a road trip to Lucknow, Allahabad and Kolkata. From his many road trips to different parts of our country and from OYO’s in-depth research study, Kapoor noticed how people aren’t staying with their relatives anymore. They preferred living in a hotel, which is a cultural shift in our country. Walking us through Travelpedian further, Kapoor said, “If you look at the patterns emerge, the first unlock started with the big cities and we wondered what is it that these big cities offered: one type of cohort was those who wanted to just leave their homes and work from somewhere else. Secondly, people were worried about going and staying in someone else’s home, which is pretty common in India. I was in Allahabad in September and was trying to book an OYO, it was fully sold out. It was because of an exam which was going on and it was booked by parents whose kids were appearing for that exam. Third thing we saw is seasonality disappearing because work from home is allowed. The classic pattern of people travelling during peak seasons and vacations is phasing out. People are going away for staycations, working for 8-10 hours and using the rest of time for leisure. Lastly, they are also up for impromptu plans because they want to be reasonably sure that they are ready to travel.” OYO’s goals for 2021 The focus areas in 2021 would be more or less the same at OYO. Kapoor said that one thing that COVID-19 has taught us is that the future is unpredictable and the team is prepared for uncertain 2-3 quarters. “We have learnt the power of building product-led solutions for partners and that we will continue to invest in that. We want to open OYO-products and solutions to a much wider set of customers. We have all kinds of customers today but I think we have the opportunity to present OYO as the best option for anybody who is seeking good-quality experience. OYO has been recognised as the best start-up to work with and my focus would be to continue being the best place to work with for our target not just in India, but globally as well.”

Over 8.5 million new user bookings were made on the OYO app and website in 2020: Rohit Kapoor

<ul><li>In just four months since its formal entry in the US, Oyo said that it has 100 <keyword id="6368036" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="hotels">hotels</keyword> in the market. </li><li>Oyo is present in over 60 cities including Dallas, Las Vegas, Houston, Los Angeles, Seattle, Atlanta and Miami. </li><li>It is already the largest hotel chain in China in terms of rooms.</li></ul>Oyo Hotels &amp; Homes said that it now has 100 hotels in the US. The company entered the US market in June 2019, and scaled its operations in just over four months. It is present in over 60 cities in the US including Dallas, Las Vegas, Houston, Los Angeles, Seattle, Atlanta and Miami. It is adding one building per day, the company says. It had earlier said that it will be investing $300 million into the market. “The US is a key home-market of us given the huge potential. While we continue to transform buildings across the country, we want to stay true to our philosophy that everyone, every day should be #LivingTheGoodLife. We do this by offering good quality ‘value-chic’ accommodations, with great ratings at unique price points,” said <keyword id="1670338" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ritesh-Agarwal">Ritesh Agarwal</keyword>, founder, Oyo. The $5 billion company already has the largest network of hotels and rooms in South Asia. It is also the largest hotel chain in China in terms of rooms. Recently, OYO had opened a 35,000 square-foot casino in Las Vegas called OYO Hotel &amp; Casin. The property, which was earlier a Hooters hotel, has 657 rooms across nineteen floors.

Oyo now has 100 hotels in the US, is adding one building a day

<ul><li>OYO Hotel &amp; <keyword id="8016838" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="casino-in-las-vegas">Casino in Las Vegas</keyword> will have 657 rooms. </li><li>The property was earlier a <keyword id="8016837" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="hooters-casino-hotel">Hooters Casino Hotel</keyword>. </li><li>Earlier in June, OYO has announced its decision to invest $300 million in the US.</li></ul>Indian hospitality unicorn OYO has opened a 35,000 square-foot casino in Las Vegas. Called OYO Hotel &amp; Casino, the property will have 657 rooms across nineteen floors. Interestingly, the hotel was earlier the Hooters Casino Hotel. “Earlier in June, we announced our plan to invest $300 million in the US. With our newest hotel in Las Vegas, we are excited to cater to a completely different audience segment and are certain that this will be the perfect start to OYO’s journey in Las Vegas,” said <keyword id="1670338" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ritesh-Agarwal">Ritesh Agarwal</keyword>, Founder &amp; CEO, <keyword id="4964826" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="OYO-hotels">OYO Hotels</keyword> &amp; Homes. OYO partnered with Highgate which will take over the management of the hotel. Highgate is a premier hospitality investment and management company. Meanwhile, the casino will be managed by Paragon Gaming. The $5 billion company is already the largest network of hotels and rooms in South Asia, and is the second largest in China. Now, it is looking to enter big markets like New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco. It already has 50 hotels across 15 states in the US, with 350 employees. It is currently present in cities like Dallas, Houston, Augusta, Atlanta and Miami.

OYO opens a 35,000 sft casino in Las Vegas by rebranding a Hooters hotel

<ul><li><keyword id="4964826" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="OYO-hotels">OYO Hotels</keyword> and Homes has now entered Indian reality television.</li><li>The winner of the <keyword id="11977" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Reality-Show">reality show</keyword> will get a one-year free stay at an OYO Home property. </li><li>In its 16th season, the viewership on the weekly premiere episodes of <keyword id="17941" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="MTV-roadies">MTV Roadies</keyword> has grown by 20%</li></ul>OYO Hotels and Homes has now ventured into a new territory – Indian television. The Indian hospitality <keyword id="152045" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Unicorn">unicorn</keyword> has partnered with the reality show MTV Roadies. For the 16th season of the show, the contestants will be staying at an OYO Home property. Moreover, the winner of the show will get a one-year free stay at an OYO Home property. “Over the years, MTV has tapped into the passion points of Indian youth - adventure, travel and lifestyle. Our association with OYO Hotels &amp; Homes for Roadies Real Heroes is a seamless fit with the promise of an adrenaline rush,” said Navin Shenoy, <keyword id="6354839" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="marketing">Marketing</keyword> Head –Youth, Music and English Entertainment, Viacom18. The unicorn startup believes that the association is “perfect” and will give them an opportunity to connect with the Indian youth. The startup has also planned a 360-degree multimedia campaign through various channels like Facebook, Instagram, e-mailers, web/application banners, push notifications and a series of TVCs. In its 16th season now, MTV Roadies has managed to gain a loyal following over the years. Its latest season – Roadies Real Heroes – has witnessed an increase in content engagement with its avg premiere time spent going up by 7 minute this season. The viewership on the weekly premiere episodes has grown by 20%, according to data from BARC India, compared to the last season. The first seven episodes saw 209 TVT (Television Viewership in Thousands). See Also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/oyo-partners-with-softbank-to-launch-oyo-hotels-japan/articleshow/68719436.cms">OYO partners with Softbank to create a joint venture for its Japan business</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/home-renting-giant-airbnb-invests-in-indian-unicorn-oyo-rooms/articleshow/68670636.cms">Airbnb picks up a stake in its Indian rival Oyo Rooms</a>

An Indian hospitality unicorn is now home to a 16-year old hit reality show, MTV Roadies

OYO Hotels &amp; Homes, the world's leading hospitality chain, today announced that it will continue to ramp up efforts to improve its information security framework as well as roll-out stronger ethical hacking and bug bounty programs to encourage continuous improvement and collaboration with ethical hacking experts. This development is in line with the company's commitment towards ensuring data privacy and building a robust cybersecurity network. According to Jagbir Singh, Engineering Manager - DevOps and InfoSec, OYO Hotels &amp; Homes, "One of our biggest assets is the trust our customers, partners and employees place in us. We understand that trust is hard to earn and easy to lose. One key responsibility in earning this trust is protecting the data our customers and other stakeholders have with us from any unauthorised use. Our team of 1100+ world-class security, network and software engineers and external partners across multiple geographies is at work 24x7 ensuring the protection of this data, so our customers and stakeholders can rest easy." The Bug Bounty program that the company aims to introduce is towards ensuring that there is a credible and continuous flow of positive feedback from independent security groups and individual researchers to mitigate against any bug or shortfall in the company's systems. This is in line with the established practice of recognition and reward for ethical hackers who help responsibly investigate shortfalls within the tech architecture of several tech companies including the likes of Silicon Valley giants like Facebook, Google etc. OYO has accordingly developed an improved responsible disclosure policy to encourage honest and responsible reporting of any potential risks. Additionally, OYO has partnered with a specialized cybersecurity startup, AppSecure/Hackerhive, that connects companies and ethical hackers to help the former discover and fix security vulnerabilities and is in the process of developing a full-fledged bug bounty program. Security a priority Security is an integral part of any process at OYO; beginning from the collection of data, during transfer and processing to storage at rest. We follow a comprehensive information security framework based on NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology, USA), ISO 27001 and other stringent industry standards. Our commitment also extends to employee training and sensitization at every step. All new joiners at OYO go through information security training as part of the New Employee Orientation. The company's software developers and other Information Security personnel also attend a mandatory quarterly refresher since the technology in this space is dynamic and evolving very quickly. There is also an annual mandatory refresher training for all existing employees. Commenting on this announcement, Anil Goel, Group Chief Technology and Product Officer, said, "We have a robust and world-class security team comprising of in-house and external experts employing best in class security techniques including virtual private networks/cloud, firewalls, intrusion prevention and detection devices (IPS and IDS), security trainings for all engineers, static and dynamic code analysis, regular vulnerability assessments and network penetration tests. In today's digital world, a cyberattack is a real concern. Hence, in line with our efforts to continually improve, we are investing in ethical hacking programs as well." OYO also joined hands with other technology companies to address the issue of increasing online frauds and save guests from cybercrimes. Along with other companies, OYO met the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) representatives and made a joint representation on the issue that also addressed the plan on how to curb these online frauds followed by a meeting with other stakeholders in the telecom industry. The company has a long way to go and as it continues to amplify investments in this ever-evolving space, it aims to continually improve. About OYO Hotels and Homes Opening its doors in 2013, OYO Hotels &amp; Homes, a young hotel startup, today is the world's leading chain of hotels and homes. The portfolio combines fully operated real estate comprising more than 43,000 hotels with over 1 million rooms. Through its vacation homes business, the company offers travellers and city dwellers access to over 130,000 homes around the world under OYO Home, Belvilla, Danland, Dancenter and Germany-based Traum-Ferienwohnungen brands. OYO today operates in over 800 cities in 80 countries, including the U.S., Europe, U.K., India, Middle East, Southeast Asia, and Japan.

OYO to roll out comprehensive ethical hacking and bug bounty programs

<ul><li><keyword id="2808667" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="OYO">OYO</keyword> has announced a Joint Venture with <keyword id="163404" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Softbank">Softbank</keyword> Corp and Softbank Vision fund to launch <keyword id="7496028" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Oyo-Hotels-Japan">Oyo Hotels Japan</keyword>. </li><li>Softbank has been an investor in OYO since 2018.</li><li>OYO had recently announced its funding from Airbnb as well.</li></ul>Indian hospitality <keyword id="152045" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Unicorn">unicorn</keyword> OYO has announced its partnership with Japan-based SoftBank Corp and the SoftBank Vision fund to expand its business in Japan. The new venture called Oyo Hotels Japan will be led by Prasun Chaudhary, one of OYO's founding members. OYO had recently announced its housing rental service in Japan called Oyo Life. The company’s official statement said that their business in Japan would “empower small and independent asset owners in Japan with its rapid transformation capabilities and integrated hotel / ryokan management system powered by advanced AI technology.” Softbank has been a loyal supporter of OYO. The Japanese investment firm has been one of OYO's investors since 2015. It was Softbank's investment that led OYO into the Indian unicorn club with a $5 billion valuation in September 2018, a huge jump from the $900 million valuation it had until then. OYO which had expanded its business in China in 2017 had already made China one of its biggest markets. Now, with its entry into Japan it aims to get closer to its dream of being the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/former-indigo-chief-is-aiming-to-make-the-6-year-old-oyo-the-worlds-largest-hotel-chain/articleshow/67536612.cms">world’s biggest hotel chain.</a> “OYO is already the most preferred brand in the budget to mid-segment hospitality space in several global markets, where our operational expertise in revenue management, and distribution, through both offline and online channels, has helped us gain significant momentum,” said <keyword id="1670338" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ritesh-Agarwal">Ritesh Agarwal</keyword>, Group CEO &amp; Founder, OYO Hotels &amp; Homes. OYO had recently announced a strategic investment from global giant Airbnb. See Also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/home-renting-giant-airbnb-invests-in-indian-unicorn-oyo-rooms/articleshow/68670636.cms">Airbnb picks up a stake in its Indian rival Oyo Rooms</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/oyo-rooms-eyeing-acquisition-of-freshmenu/articleshow/68112104.cms">Oyo wants a bite of foodtech, may acquire Freshmenu: Report</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/former-indigo-chief-is-aiming-to-make-the-6-year-old-oyo-the-worlds-largest-hotel-chain/articleshow/67536612.cms">A 6-year-old Indian startup wants to be world’s biggest hotel chain</a>

OYO partners with Softbank to create a joint venture for its Japan business

OYO Hotels &amp; Homes, the world’s second-largest and fastest-growing chain of hotels, homes, managed living, and workspaces, is enabling micro-entrepreneurship opportunities for thousands of real estate owners and helping them build a successful business. The company’s innovative business model turns around assets that were either lying unused or operating at standards that are not at par with the industry, into spaces that generate high yields, hence, turning many of these asset owners into crorepatis. Some of these asset owners who have seen tremendous success with their properties after joining hands with OYO belong to Gujarat. As Deepak Shah, an asset owner from Ahmedabad, says, “It has been three years since I have been managing this hotel with family along with OYO’s support. The biggest challenge for me earlier was to approach clients and market my hotel. With OYO and its support, marketing my property and getting clients to take notice was no longer a worry. Our property is at a convenient location that is in close proximity to different corporate offices making it a preferred place to stay. We have an in-house multi-cuisine restaurant and also have the facility of outdoor seating in the terrace area which can be booked for different occasions. Owing to great marketing, quality accommodation and customer service that we have been able to provide with OYO’s help has resulted in a 90% occupancy on average. It has been a very fruitful association with OYO and we aim to continue with this in the years to come.” OYO is continuously working with 500+ strong asset owner community in Gujarat to build successful and sustainable businesses. In line with this, OYO plans to expand and hire 2000+ employees across multiple functions, including Business Development, Operations, Service, Sales and Enterprise Partnerships, in the next one year in Gujarat to empower asset owners and enable them to ensure a great hospitality experience for guests, hence, increasing yields. Further to this, OYO also announced its partnership with Mountania Developers, to open the doors to its first upmarket business hotel in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. How can you be benefited after becoming an asset owner with OYO? Twofold value proposition OYO offers asset owners a two-fold value proposition. First, OYO provides partners with the necessary capital to bring a building up to OYO's standards. Moreover, it also leverages available data to predict RevPAR, internal rate of return and ROI. With these details, OYO can indicate yield guarantee to the underlying asset owner. End-to-End Support OYO invests in the assets alongside asset owners to offer end-to-end solutions and support. Right from offering free design consulting to upgrading and transforming hotel infrastructure, to easing access to finance, transparent payment protocols, multiple touch-points, marketing excellence, tech innovation and regulatory compliance assistance ----OYO’s focus continues to be on generating high yields for asset owners along with offering excellent customer service. OYO can transform and renovate assets in a record time of 3-14 days and on-board them at an even quicker pace — a stark contrast to the industry standard of up to 90 days. Increase in Occupancy An asset owner, Rick Patel, based in the US elaborates on the jump in occupancy. He says, "Before OYO, our occupancy was about 20-25% and now, we are running at about 80% occupancy. We have never reached this occupancy rate before in the last 5 years. I would definitely recommend OYO to my friends and family interested in getting into the hospitality industry. My experience with OYO has been amazing. The team is great to work with, very energetic and supportive. We are just looking forward to the next level." OYO brings to the table a successful model of combining design, hospitality, and technological expertise, financial acumen and operational capabilities to real estate owners around the world, giving them the ability to get a higher return on investments, access easy financing opportunities, transform their hotels, and offer good quality customer service, thereby significantly increasing occupancy and profitability – in every OYO building. There are over 35,000 of these buildings worldwide. OYO has been able to generate a high yield for asset owners by maintaining 70-80% occupancy, which is often an issue with an asset-light model. On an average, over 75% of hotel owners associated with OYO have seen an increase of 20-30% in occupancy, a 2.5 x jump in RevPar and a significant jump in profit, for every asset operating as an OYO-branded property. Another asset owner, Narendra Saini from Ahmedabad, says, “It has been three months since my partner and I joined hands with OYO and are already witnessing great results in terms of occupancy and yields. Prior to joining hands with OYO, our main challenge was promoting our hotel through different channels. There was a time when in the offseason we used to get only 25-30% occupancy which now, post associating with OYO, has jumped to more than 80%. With OYO, it has been a true collaboration of sorts where we both are mutually benefitting. Our hotel witnesses bookings from corporate clients. We have an in house restaurant and are soon going to open a multi-cuisine rooftop restaurant by next month.” Best Pricing Mechanism in the Industry OYO has introduced dynamic pricing in the hospitality industry to create a level-playing ground even for an independent or small hotelier. OYO’s pricing, inventory allocation, and revenue management are driven by a machine learning-based algorithm for prediction and dynamic pricing. The algorithm makes 60 million micro-optimizations, every day, to arrive at the optimal price point that ensures an affordable stay for guests while driving higher yields and occupancy for the asset owner. Above &amp; Beyond To further support the business goals of asset owners, OYO launched OYO Partner Engagement Network (OPEN) in India - an industry-first series of year-long initiatives. This was followed up with another industry-first initiative called ‘Cash in Bank’ facility to offer asset owners across India quick, hassle-free and collateral-free business advances to upgrade or renovate their buildings, with the never seen before ease, turnaround time, and convenience. This will further help asset owners improve the guest experience along with direct and repeat rate that’s already approximately 90%. OYO also introduced Partner Privilege Program in India to boost asset owner success and growth on the one hand and create a mechanism for continual engagement and recognition on the other. The Partner Privilege Program provides exclusive benefits and opportunities to OYO India’s top-performing hotel owners for their personal and professional advancement. Amol Dhir, an asset owner from Agra and a member of OYO India Partner Advisory Council, says, “I strongly believe that getting affiliated to a brand like OYO can help the small, unbranded hotels in tapping the guests within the brand ecosystem. OYO’s sales team is fabulously supporting my hotel. They are running the show from behind the curtain, where a number of sales representatives, are pitching my hotel, even beyond the country’s boundaries to intended travellers.” On his partnership and journey with OYO, Amol says, “When I joined this hotel 12 years back I had a big vision for it, perhaps way too big than what my grandfather, my father and my family had for this hotel. I wanted a support system, a partner who could assist me in this. One day people from OYO walked in and they pitched me the idea of getting my hotel onboarded. I felt that they were just the right people who I could entrust my idea and push my vision further and we could grow along. The biggest change I found when OYO came along was how tech-savvy they were. Now, sitting at home I get to check the occupancy reports, employee management, booking and revenue reports. As an independent hotelier, I could not have achieved this or would have taken a little longer to get there. Technology with OYO became more accessible, affordable. Our life as a businessman became easier through this technology. For me, OYO has always been a partner and it is giving us various opportunities to get featured and grow along.” If you are inspired by these success stories, you can know more about how to become an asset owner with OYO here: <a href="https://partner.oyorooms.com/in">https://partner.oyorooms.com/in</a> Disclaimer: This article is a part of a commercial partnership Oyo and Business Insider India.

Here's how OYO is enabling micro-entrepreneurship and creating crorepatis—many of them are from Gujarat

Tech giant <keyword id="10387" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="microsoft" source="Orion">Microsoft</keyword> and travel technology platform <keyword id="2808667" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="oyo" source="Orion">OYO</keyword> on Thursday announced that they have entered a multi-year strategic alliance to co-develop next generation travel and hospitality products and technologies. OYO will adopt <keyword id="1033762" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Microsoft-Azure" source="Orion">Microsoft Azure</keyword> as a key enabler to drive cloud-based innovations and reimagine the hospitality and travel tech industry. The solutions will be geared to benefit patrons who operate small and medium hotel and home storefronts. Microsoft has also made a strategic equity investment in OYO. "Combining the power of Azure with the tech and product stack developed by OYO, we are looking forward to accelerating innovation in travel and hospitality," Anant Maheshwari, President, Microsoft <keyword id="3658" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="india" source="Orion">India</keyword>, said in a statement. As part of this alliance, OYO will develop Smart Room experiences for travellers on the OYO platform, such as premium and customized in-room experiences for its guests. Using Microsoft's Azure IoT, the experience will include self-check-in supported by a digital register of arrivals and departures and self-Know Your Customer (KYC) along with IoT-managed smart locks and virtual assistance. "We are excited to join hands with Microsoft in our constant endeavour to improve business opportunities for the small and independent hotel and home owners, and to redefine experiences for travellers," said Abhinav Sinha, Global COO and Chief Product Officer - OYO Hotels and Homes. "This alliance with Microsoft will accelerate the deployment of our products in the hands of small businesses we work with, allowing us to create even more impact through an integrated technology ecosystem available on the cloud for businesses in the remotest corners of the world," Sinha added. SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/auto/news/ford-motor-to-stop-manufacturing-cars-in-india-4000-employees-may-lose-jobs/articleshow/86065322.cms">Ford Motor to stop manufacturing cars in India; 4,000 employees may lose jobs</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/amazon-vs-future-retail-supreme-court-stays-delhi-high-courts-verdict-enforcement/articleshow/86064426.cms">Amazon Vs Future Retail: Supreme court stays Delhi High Court's verdict enforcement</a>

Microsoft announces strategic investment in OYO

<ul><li>Oyo launches a SOS button for its consumers. </li><li>The unicorn startup also has a trained Oyo Safety Response Team. </li><li>With a pilot project in Gurugram currently, the service will soon be available across 25 cities in India.</li></ul>Indian unicorn hospitality startup <keyword id="2550719" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="OYO-Rooms">Oyo Rooms</keyword> has <a href="https://www.dnaindia.com/technology/report-oyo-launches-industry-first-in-app-sos-button-here-is-how-the-feature-works-2728644">launched </a>a SOS button for its users. The in-app SOS button will help users staying in Oyo hotels or partnership hotels to alert authorities during an emergency situation. The hospitality chain has also trained a 24x7 OYO Safety Response Team (SRT) which will be able to help consumers. The app will also initiate a call with local law enforcement authorities if the situation arises. A pilot of the SOS button has already been launched with Gurugram and will soon be made available in 25 cities. With increasing number of women and solo travellers in the country, the feature has been long due. “We believe that this will enable guests especially women and solo travellers to feel secure further encouraging travellers to travel to and within India," <a href="https://www.dnaindia.com/technology/report-oyo-launches-industry-first-in-app-sos-button-here-is-how-the-feature-works-2728644">said</a> Aditya Ghosh, CEO - India and South Asia, OYO Hotels and Homes. Oyo, which is the largest hotel chain in South Asia, aims to be the world’s biggest hotel chain. “We will have one million rooms inventory into our fold in the near distant future. I think, it should happen in a year and a half,” Ghosh had told the news agency PTI on January 15. The company had recently raised $100 million from China’s ride-hailing <a href="https://inc42.com/buzz/chinas-didi-chuxing-invests-in-oyo-brings-billion-dollar-funding-round-to-a-close/">company</a> Didi Chuxing, in continuation with the $1 billion fund Oyo was raising. Oyo’s valuation stays at $5 billion. See Also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/former-indigo-chief-is-aiming-to-make-the-6-year-old-oyo-the-worlds-largest-hotel-chain/articleshow/67536612.cms">A 6-Year-Old Indian Startup Wants To Be World’s Biggest Hotel Chain</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/oyo-rooms-eyeing-acquisition-of-freshmenu/articleshow/68112104.cms">Oyo wants a bite of foodtech, may acquire Freshmenu: Report</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/solo-travel-in-india-rises/articleshow/67936872.cms">More Indians are travelling solo than ever before</a>

You Searched For "OYO Hotels Homes" and got 13 results

OYO's $415 million acquisition of Amsterdam-based holiday home chain part of plan to become the world's largest hotel company

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OYO elevates India & South Asia CEO Aditya Ghosh to board of directors

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Dues, death and an investigation — all that went wrong with OYO hotels in the last 6 months

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Airbnb picks up a stake in its Indian rival Oyo Rooms

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Over 8.5 million new user bookings were made on the OYO app and website in 2020: Rohit Kapoor

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Oyo now has 100 hotels in the US, is adding one building a day

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An Indian hospitality unicorn is now home to a 16-year old hit reality show, MTV Roadies

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OYO to roll out comprehensive ethical hacking and bug bounty programs

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OYO partners with Softbank to create a joint venture for its Japan business

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Here's how OYO is enabling micro-entrepreneurship and creating crorepatis—many of them are from Gujarat

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Microsoft announces strategic investment in OYO

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