Core Insights - The article discusses the ongoing competition among food delivery platforms, highlighting the expansion of instant retail into traditional sectors like hotel services, reflecting a strategic transformation in platform economies [1][3][5] Group 1: Market Competition - The recent weekend saw intense competition in the food delivery market, with Meituan reporting a record high of 150 million instant retail orders, while Taobao Flash and Ele.me announced a daily order volume exceeding 80 million [1][2] - Meituan's restaurant orders increased by 65% compared to regular days, with KFC's "whole chicken" reaching over 1 million orders in half a day [2] - Ele.me, leveraging Taobao Flash's traffic, saw significant growth in non-food categories, with over 1,205 categories experiencing a more than 100% increase in order volume [2] Group 2: Strategic Expansion - The inclusion of hotel services in the instant retail competition indicates a strategic layout, with discounts on hotel bookings ranging from 18% to 67% [3][4] - Instant retail is evolving from a single focus on food delivery to a comprehensive service system that meets both immediate and advance booking needs [3][4] - Platforms like Alibaba are integrating resources from Taobao, Ele.me, and Fliggy to enhance user experience and reduce internal traffic loss [4] Group 3: Ecosystem Development - Meituan aims to create a full-chain consumption experience by extending its core food delivery services to hotels, movies, and travel, thus managing user lifecycle value [5] - JD.com is entering the food delivery space to boost daily active users and drive e-commerce and instant retail growth, leveraging its supply chain advantages [5] - The competition is shifting from simple price subsidies to building an ecosystem that enhances user stickiness and creates a closed-loop system [3][5]