Gewara

Gewara, formally known as Shanghai Gewa Business Information Consulting Co., Ltd., was established in 2008 by co-founder Liu Yong. Prior to launching the company, Liu Yong accumulated valuable experience in the online travel sector at eLong, a background that informed his approach to building a comprehensive online ticketing platform. The company emerged as a significant player in China's online-to-offline (O2O) e-commerce landscape, specializing in the entertainment and lifestyle ticketing market.

The core of Gewara's business was an online platform that provided users with the ability to purchase tickets for a wide array of events, with a primary focus on movie tickets. It also offered services for booking seats at theaters and sports stadiums. This model positioned Gewara as a direct-to-consumer platform, serving the general public in China seeking convenient access to local entertainment options. The business generated revenue by facilitating these ticket sales, likely through service fees or commissions from the venues.

A significant milestone in Gewara's history was its merger with Wepiao, another major online ticketing platform, in a deal announced in December 2015. This strategic consolidation was backed by major industry players including Tencent, Wanda Group, and Enlight Media, creating a dominant entity in the Chinese movie ticketing market. The newly formed company was named Weying Technology. This merger effectively marked the conclusion of Gewara's journey as an independent entity, integrating its operations and user base into the larger Weying ecosystem.

Keywords: online ticketing, O2O e-commerce, movie tickets, entertainment platform, China, consumer services, event booking, ticketing merger, Wepiao, Weying Technology