The Internet is proving to be crossing boundaries, as was proven in China’s ever-growing online-to-offline (O2O) market in the dining industry. More and more Chinese diners are in on the trend, as more people favor online reservations across the country.
This transformative effect on the dining industry--also a new trend--has sparked a discussion on an Internet dining model, according to Sina's Tech News portal.
In 2014 alone, the O2O market has reached 94.37 billion yuan (roughly $15.2 billion), which represents a 51.5-percent increase from 2013 data, according to China E-Commerce Research Center (CECRC). Latest statistics have also shown that O2O users in China have reached 189 million, approximately more than a third of the country's total Internet users.
The online dining industry, with its huge market potential and user scale, has attracted several Internet enterprises. Such companies are now competing against each other to increase industry efficiency, create new business models and values, and better allocate resources.
According to online news portal Want China Times, the Internet first made contact with the dining industry around 10 years ago. Prior to the explosion of the O2O market, the group-buying model, which emerged in 2009, allowed customers to pay less for better services.
It's been a journey for the online industry. From resolving transportation and pricing issues, Internet enterprises involved in the online dining industry are now coming up with new models to save time and add value.
Firms such as Xiachufang.com, aside from providing online reservation services, also provide cooking instructions. Bee Quick, like some others, has taken to setting up convenient ways to deliver fresh food in order to stand out from the crowd.
Statistics and analysts predict that the O2O dining market will reach the 200 billion yuan ($32.3 billion) mark in 2017.