On Tuesday, vacation rental firm Airbnb Inc said, from July 30 it will shut down all listings and experiences in mainland China.

The development sees yet another Western internet platform joining a long list of companies which have opted out of the Chinese market.

Airbnb Inc made the announcement in a letter posted on its official WeChat account addressed to its Chinese users. It did not give any reasons for its decision. It however clarified that Chinese users will be allowed to book listings and experiences outside of China.

“We have made the difficult decision to refocus our efforts in China on outbound travel and suspend our homes and Experiences of Hosts in China, starting from July 30, 2022,” said Nathan Blecharczyk, co-founder of Airbnb, in the letter.

Western internet platforms that have exited China includes Linkedin, Yahoo, Alphabet Inc’s Google and Meta Platforms Inc’s Facebook, in signs of internet decoupling.

“The decision was not easy for us and I know that it is even more difficult for you,” said Blecharczyk while adding, “We’ve built and grown a thriving Host community in China together and have welcomed more than 25 million guest arrivals since 2016.”

Categories: Creativity, Entrepreneurship, HR & Organization, Strategy

Tags: Airbnb Inc, Alphabet Inc, China, Chinese market, close, co founder, companies, decoupling, experiences, Facebook, Google Inc, internet platform, LinkedIn, listings, mainland China, Meta Platforms Inc, Nathan Blecharczyk, opted out, rental, shut down, travel, Vacation, WeChat, Western, Yahoo