Following the launch of Asia’s first regional luxury property website – iLuxuryasia.com (www.iluxuryasia.com) - the iProperty.com Group, owner of Asia’s leading network of property portals and Malaysia’s No. 1 real estate website, iProperty.com Malaysia (www.iproperty.com.my), has acquired a controlling stake in Info-Portal Tech International Company Limited, owner of Taiwan’s No. 1 property buying website, VRHouse.com.tw (www.vrhouse.com.tw).
VRHouse.com.tw is Taiwan’s No. 1 online property portal as measured by user traffic, developer clients and revenue. Info-Portal Tech International Company Limited is based in Taipei and operates the portal and all its related sites, which are Chinese language based. In total, over 225,000 unique users view and use VRHouse.com.tw’s property listings and services each month.
Patrick Grove, executive chairman of iProperty.com Group, said: “We are delighted with the acquisition of VRHouse.com.tw in Taiwan. Our experience in Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong and the Philippines allows us to bring a strong value-added proposition to VRHouse.com.tw. We also look forward to working with the dynamic, entrepreneurial local team to further dominate the Taiwan market and the region at large.”
“Most importantly, this acquisition completes our ownership of market-leading property portals across the Chinese diaspora in the region. We now hold the unique position of operating the leading online property portals in all the Chinese-speaking markets in this region ex-China, allowing us an exceptional strategic opportunity,” said Grove, adding that Taiwan has exceptional broadband penetration. He also added that recent moves to open the market to mainland Chinese investments translate into good news for the property market in Taiwan.
“We are extremely pleased that we have been able to acquire the clear leader in the Taiwan online property market,” said Grove. According to him, iProperty.com’s regional sites and listings network is now viewed by over 1 million unique users in Asia Pacific each month and there is further excitement caused by recent political events and strengthening of ties with China which is expected to result in a significant increase in mainland Chinese investing in Taiwanese property. He also said that the group plans to position newly acquired VRHouse.com.tw as a key media property that facilitates the process.
Jackson Cheng, chairman of Info-Portal Tech International Company Limited said, “We are extremely excited by this transaction and believe that under the iProperty.com umbrella, VRHouse.com.tw’s efforts to continue to grow and dominate the online property market in Taiwan will be greatly boosted.”
The acquisition of VRHouse.com.tw is an addition to the group’s market-leading online property operations in Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong and the Philippines, and represents the latest in a string of acquisitions since its listing on Sept 11, 2007. The group continues to seek further strategic acquisitions of leading property portals and complimentary businesses throughout regional markets.
***
About iProperty.com Malaysia (www.iproperty.com.my)
iProperty.com Malaysia is the country’s No. 1 property and real estate website in all key metrics (confirmed by: ComScore, Frost & Sullivan and Alexa.com). Working with Malaysia’s top developers and more than 1,500 real estate agents, the website offers the largest online database of properties for sale and rent in the country. iProperty.com Malaysia also publishes a monthly magazine.
About iProperty.com (www.iproperty.com)
The iProperty.com Group is Asia’s No. 1 online property group, with leading property websites in Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Philippines. It is part of Australian Securities Exchange-listed IPGA Limited (www.ipgalimited.com), (ASX: IPP). Recently, the iProperty.com Group made history by winning the highly prestigious CNBC Asia Pacific Property Awards in the “Best Property Portal” category for four of its websites – Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Philippines.
iProperty.com Network:
Singapore: iProperty.com Singapore
Malaysia: iProperty.com Malaysia
Hong Kong: GoHome.com.hk and House18.com
Taiwan: VRHOUSE.com.tw
Philippines: iProperty.com Philippines
Events: iProperty.com EXPO
Luxury: iLuxuryasia.com
