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Universal Beijing Resort partners with Alibaba on digitisation

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universal beijing alibaba

Universal Beijing Resort and Alibaba have partnered to digitise operations at the upcoming attraction. From facial-recognition entry to app-based food ordering, the companies hope to provide the ultimate guest experience.

Universal Beijing will use the Alibaba Business Operating System (ABOS) for park management and operations, for a more seamless and convenient visit (via Alizila).

Brian Roberts, chairman and CEO of Comcast, said: “Our partnership with Alibaba will help us do exactly that. Together, we can take the theme park experience to a new level.”

Visitors will be able to book tickets and hotels via the Universal Beijing flagship store on Fliggy, Alibaba’s online travel platform.

Universal Beijing will use Alibaba operating system

universal beijing resort

They will also be able to watch Universal movies and resort programming on Alibaba’s streaming app, Youku.

When they arrive, visitors can use Alipay’s facial-recognition technology for park entry, storage lockers, express-lane access, F&B, and merchandise.

Alibaba and Universal Beijing are also looking at ways to use Alipay for trip-planning or parking, and for encouraging low-carbon choices.

These could include ticketless entry and digital payments, which would become ‘green energy’ points in Alipay Ant Forest.

Alibaba tech to enhance visitor experience in Beijing

universal beijing resort

Universal Beijing guests will also be able to use the Koubei app for personalised F&B recommendations and online meal-ordering.

Alibaba’s cloud computing will support the technology infrastructure at the resort, while Tmall will work with Universal Beijing on co-marketing campaigns.

Alibaba Group executive chairman and CEO, Daniel Zhang, said he hopes the partnership will provide an experience that is “unmatched anywhere”.

“This partnership will also bring to fruition a multidimensional, data-enabled operations-management solution for the industry and create a truly digitised theme park,” he added.

‘We can take the theme park experience to a new level’

universal beijing resort

“The future of commerce is driven by technology and big data, and digitisation will be the source of brand-new growth opportunities for all businesses.”

Universal Beijing, opening in 2021, recently announced the seven themed lands coming to Universal Studios Beijing, including those based on Kung Fu Panda, Jurassic World, and Harry Potter.

Images: Universal Beijing Resort/Alibaba Group

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Bea Mitchell

Bea is a journalist specialising in entertainment, attractions and tech with 10 years' experience. She has written and edited for publications including CNET, BuzzFeed, Digital Spy, Evening Standard and BBC. Bea graduated from King's College London and has an MA in journalism.

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