Norwegian Cruise Line Partners with Alipay to bring China's Preferred Payment Method to Sea on its Newest Cruise Ship, Norwegian Joy
SHANGHAI, June 22, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Norwegian Cruise Line (Norwegian), a leading cruise brand of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings (NASDAQ: NCLH), together with Alipay, the world's largest online and mobile payment platform operated by Ant Financial Services Group, today announced the debut of the Alipay payment solution on board Norwegian's most recent addition to its fleet and its first in the China market, Norwegian Joy.
This is a pioneering move where a major cruise operator has debuted a cruise ship with Alipay as part of its payment platform from the very beginning of operations. It also demonstrates Norwegian's commitment to providing guests in China with offerings geared to their specific needs and tastes. With more than 450 million users, Alipay is China, and the world's, leading online and mobile payment platform, one that significantly enhances the payment platform lineup on Norwegian Joy.
Norwegian began accepting transactions on the Alipay platform on a trial basis beginning on a special preview cruise for members and guests of Alibaba Group (Alibaba) which departed from Shanghai on June 10. Including the Alipay payment solution on board Norwegian Joy is another step in a partnership announced earlier this year between Alibaba and Norwegian's parent company, Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings (NASDAQ: NCLH) – a partnership which combines Norwegian's experience in providing unforgettable vacations with Alibaba's insights into Chinese consumers to offer a cruise product tailor-made for Chinese guests.
"When designing Norwegian Joy, our goal was to construct a ship that would deliver a First Class at Sea experience while making Chinese guests still feel at home," said David Herrera, President of NCLH China. Providing the Alipay payment solution to our guests allows our guests to make purchases with the most-used payment system in China at the several luxury shops, dining venues with multinational cuisine and other points of purchase on Norwegian Joy in the same way that they use it on land. The great success of our trial on our June 10 preview voyage has allowed us to make this mobile payment method available to all guests much sooner than originally planned. I'd like to thank the team at Alipay who worked hand in hand with the team at Norwegian to make this possible. I am extremely proud of what we have accomplished together," continued Herrera.
"We are thrilled to have guests on Norwegian Joy have the ability to make their onboard purchases with Alipay just like they do at home," said Angel Zhao, COO of International Business Unit and Vice President of Ant Financial, "With so much to see, experience, and purchase aboard the new Norwegian Joy, we are truly excited to offer Alipay to our valued customers. Having the Alipay platform ready for guests beginning with Norwegian Joy's June 10 preview sailing was a joint effort that was made possible by the conviction and professionalism of both sides."
Norwegian Joy has sailed a series of preview cruises during the month of June, with the ship's christening ceremony soon to take place on June 27 in Shanghai, featuring the ship's Godfather, 'King of Chinese Pop,' **. Year-round voyages on Norwegian Joy from Shanghai begin on June 28 with a season of sailings departing from Tianjin from August 26 to September 15.
About Norwegian Joy
Norwegian Joy is Norwegian Cruise Line's first purpose-built ship customized for the Chinese cruise market. The name Norwegian Joy emphasizes the experience that the ship offers, a promise that guests will 'Experience Paradise on the Sea.' Accommodating 3,883 guests, Norwegian Joy is designed to provide First Class at Sea experiences with onboard amenities that cater to the unique vacation desires of Chinese guests. Norwegian Joy provides a multitude of VIP accommodations including The Haven by Norwegian®, the line's exclusive, ship-within-a-ship luxury suite complex, which also includes an all-new The Haven Observation Lounge featuring 180 degree views, and a Concierge level, an all-new accommodations category that will provide a VIP experience featuring an exclusive Concierge Observation Lounge and larger balcony staterooms. Accommodations offerings also include staterooms designed specifically for families including a multitude of connecting staterooms, for extended families traveling together, as well as a wide array of mini-suite, balcony, ocean view and interior staterooms, many with virtual balconies.
Norwegian Joy offers engaging and innovative activities including a first at sea two-level competitive racetrack, an open-air laser tag course, thrilling simulator rides, Oculus virtual reality technology and interactive video walls at the Galaxy Pavilion, and two multi-story waterslides. In addition, Norwegian Joy features a tranquil open space park as well as the line's largest upscale shopping district, complete with everything from exceptional duty-free shops to world-renowned global luxury brands.
About Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings
Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. (Nasdaq:NCLH) is a leading global cruise company which operates the Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises brands.
With a combined fleet of 25 ships with approximately 50,400 berths, these brands offer itineraries to more than 510 destinations worldwide. The Company will introduce seven additional ships through 2025, and has an option to introduce two additional ships for delivery in 2026 and 2027.
Norwegian Cruise Line is the innovator in cruise travel with a 50-year history of breaking the boundaries of traditional cruising. Most notably, Norwegian revolutionized the cruise industry by offering guests the freedom and flexibility to design their ideal cruise vacation on their schedule. Today, Norwegian invites guests to enjoy a relaxed, resort style cruise vacation on some of the newest and most contemporary ships at sea with a wide variety of accommodation options, including The Haven by Norwegian®, a luxury enclave with suites, private pools and dining, concierge service and personal butlers. Oceania Cruises offers an unrivaled vacation experience renowned for the finest cuisine at sea and destination-rich itineraries that span the globe. Expertly crafted voyages aboard designer-inspired, intimate ships call on ports across Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, New Zealand, the South Pacific and the Americas. Celebrating its 25th anniversary in 2017, Regent Seven Seas Cruises offers the industry's most inclusive luxury experience aboard its all-suite fleet. A voyage with Regent Seven Seas Cruises includes round-trip air, highly personalized service, exquisite cuisine, fine wines and spirits, unlimited internet access, sightseeing excursions in every port, gratuities, ground transfers, a pre-cruise hotel package for guests staying in concierge-level suites and higher and beginning in summer 2017, business class air will be provided for all roundtrip air originating from the U.S. and Canada.
About Alipay
Operated by Ant Financial Services Group, Alipay is the world's leading mobile and online payment platform. Launched in 2004, Alipay currently has over 450 million active users and over 400 financial institution partners. Alipay has evolved from a digital wallet to a lifestyle enabler. Users can hail a taxi, book a hotel, buy movie tickets, pay utility bills, make appointments with doctors, or purchase wealth management products directly from within the app. In addition to online payments, Alipay is expanding to in-store offline payments both inside and outside of China. Over 8 million brick-and-mortar merchants now accept Alipay across China. Alipay's in-store payment service is covering more than 120,000 retail stores across the world, and tax reimbursement via Alipay is supported in 24 countries and regions. Alipay works with over 200 overseas financial institutions and payment solution providers to enable cross-border payments for Chinese travelling overseas and overseas customers who purchase products from Chinese e-commerce sites. Alipay currently supports 19 currencies.
About Ant Financial
Ant Financial Services Group, a related company of Alibaba Group, is focused on serving small and micro enterprises, as well as individuals. With the vision "bringing the world equal opportunities," Ant Financial is dedicated to building an open ecosystem of Internet thinking and technology while working with other financial institutions to support the future financial needs of society as a whole. Businesses operated by Ant Financial Services Group include Alipay, Ant Fortune, Zhima Credit and MYbank.
For more information on Ant Financial, please visit www.antgroup.com; or follow Ant on Twitter @AntFinancial.
Cautionary Statement Concerning Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this release constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. federal securities laws intended to qualify for the safe harbor from liability established by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements other than statements of historical facts contained in this release, including, without limitation, those regarding details and expectations for our newbuild program and expected financing, our business strategy, financial position, plans, prospects and objectives of management for future operations (including development plans and objectives relating to our activities), are forward-looking statements. Many, but not all, of these statements can be found by looking for words like "expect," "anticipate," "goal," "project," "plan," "believe," "seek," "will," "may," "forecast," "estimate," "intend," "future," and similar words. Forward-looking statements do not guarantee future performance and may involve risks, uncertainties and other factors which could cause our actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from the future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied in those forward-looking statements. Examples of these risks, uncertainties and other factors include, but are not limited to the impact of: adverse general economic and related factors, such as fluctuating or increasing levels of unemployment, underemployment and the volatility of fuel prices, declines in the securities and real estate markets, and perceptions of these conditions that decrease the level of disposable income of consumers or consumer confidence; the risks and increased costs associated with operating internationally; an impairment of our tradenames or goodwill which could adversely affect our financial condition and operating results; our efforts to expand our business into new markets; adverse events impacting the security of travel, such as terrorist acts, acts of piracy, armed conflict and threats thereof and other international events; breaches in data security or other disturbances to our information technology and other networks; the spread of epidemics and viral outbreaks; adverse incidents involving cruise ships; changes in fuel prices and/or other cruise operating costs; our hedging strategies; our inability to obtain adequate insurance coverage; our substantial indebtedness, including the ability to raise additional capital to fund our operations, and to generate the necessary amount of cash to service our existing debt; restrictions in the agreements governing our indebtedness that limit our flexibility in operating our business; the significant portion of our assets pledged as collateral under our existing debt agreements and the ability of our creditors to accelerate the repayment of our indebtedness; our ability to incur significantly more debt despite our substantial existing indebtedness; volatility and disruptions in the global credit and financial markets, which may adversely affect our ability to borrow and could increase our counterparty credit risks, including those under our credit facilities, derivatives, contingent obligations, insurance contracts and new ship progress payment guarantees; fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates; our inability to recruit or retain qualified personnel or the loss of key personnel; future changes relating to how external distribution channels sell and market our cruises; our reliance on third parties to provide hotel management services to certain ships and certain other services; delays in our shipbuilding program and ship repairs, maintenance and refurbishments; and other factors set forth under "Risk Factors" in our most recently filed Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and subsequent filings by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The above examples are not exhaustive and new risks emerge from time to time. Such forward-looking statements are based on our current beliefs, assumptions, expectations, estimates and projections regarding our present and future business strategies and the environment in which we will operate in the future. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date made. We expressly disclaim any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statement contained herein to reflect any change in our expectations with regard thereto or any change of events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement was based, except as required by law.
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