This week’s Update features details on two recently filed lawsuits — one by American Airlines against Sabre and the other against Southwest Airlines by airfare discounter, Skiplagged. Enjoy....more
7/20/2021
/ Airlines ,
American Airlines ,
Booking.com ,
Cross-Border Transactions ,
FinTech ,
Hotels ,
Mobile Apps ,
Online Travel Vendors ,
Payment Systems ,
Rental Property ,
Search Results ,
Southwest Airlines ,
Subscription Services ,
Travelers ,
TripAdvisor ,
Vacation Rentals ,
VRBO.com
This week’s Update features a variety of stories, including details on the recent change in leadership at Booking.com in the Asia-Pacific region. Enjoy....more
7/6/2021
/ Airlines ,
Anti-Competitive ,
Booking.com ,
Competition Authorities ,
Cookies ,
Expedia ,
Google ,
Hotels ,
Online Platforms ,
Online Travel Vendors ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Rate Parity Agreement ,
Sales & Distribution Agreements ,
Travelers
This week’s Update features a number of important stories, including details of Tripadvisor’s official launch of Tripadvisor Plus in the United States and an important update on the 1-800 Contacts FTC enforcement action....more
7/2/2021
/ AirBnB ,
Airlines ,
Anti-Competitive ,
Appeals ,
Cruise Ships ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Expedia ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Hilton ,
Hotels ,
Keyword Search ,
Online Travel Vendors ,
Pricing ,
Trademarks ,
Travelers ,
TripAdvisor ,
Vacation Rentals ,
VRBO.com
This week’s Update features two stories detailing the role that online buy now pay later companies hope to have in the travel industry’s recovery. Enjoy...more
6/14/2021
/ Airlines ,
Apple ,
Booking.com ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Expedia ,
Hotels ,
Online Travel Vendors ,
Payment Plans ,
Payment Systems ,
Travelers ,
TripAdvisor ,
Vacation Rentals ,
Verizon
This week’s Update contains a variety of stories, including details of a recent court win for German hoteliers and the recent musings of the always entertaining, Barry Diller. Enjoy....more
6/2/2021
/ AirBnB ,
Airlines ,
Anti-Competitive ,
Booking.com ,
Competition Authorities ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Expedia ,
Germany ,
Hotels ,
Online Travel Vendors ,
Rate Parity Agreement ,
Rental Property ,
Short-Term Lease ,
Travelers ,
Vacation Rentals
It was another relatively quiet week in the online travel world as evidenced by our stories below. Expedia Group’s introduction of its Fast Track program designed to recruit unhappy Airbnb hosts and its rollout of AI-enabled...more
4/13/2021
/ Airlines ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Commodities ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Expedia ,
Hotels ,
Online Travel Vendors ,
Rental Property ,
Short-Term Lease ,
Travelers ,
TripAdvisor
Last week was a relatively quiet one for the online travel industry. Hopper garnered most of the headlines with its recent funding round (and accompanying $1 billion valuation). Enjoy....more
This week’s Update provides additional information (and perspectives) on Tripadvisor’s new subscription program (Tripadvisor Plus), parity updates from South Korea and the latest on Fareportal’s antitrust claims against...more
3/29/2021
/ Airlines ,
Antitrust Litigation ,
Antitrust Violations ,
B2C ,
Booking.com ,
Expedia ,
Hotels ,
Hotels.com ,
Irreparable Harm ,
Online Travel Vendors ,
Partnerships ,
Popular ,
Price Comparisons ,
Rate Parity Agreement ,
Search Results ,
South Korea ,
Subscription Services ,
Travelers ,
TripAdvisor
This week’s Update takes a close look at Booking Holdings’ recent fourth quarter and year-end earnings release. Enjoy....more
This week’s Update features a number of stories highlighting last week’s Skift Online Travel and Distribution Summit, as well as Marriott CEO Arne Sorenson’s incredible impact on Marriott and its view on online travel. Enjoy....more
3/1/2021
/ Airlines ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Force Majeure Clause ,
Google ,
Hotels ,
Marriott ,
Online Travel Vendors ,
Refunds ,
Rental Property ,
Short-Term Lease ,
Subscription Services ,
Travelers ,
TripAdvisor ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices ,
United Airlines ,
Vacation Rentals
For readers who have been following our Online Travel Updates since its inception, we thank you for your continued support. In this year of 2021, June will mark our six-year anniversary of publishing these weekly updates...more
2/19/2021
/ Airlines ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Expedia ,
Hotels ,
Online Travel Vendors ,
Passports ,
Refunds ,
Rental Property ,
Startups ,
Travelers ,
Trivago ,
UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) ,
Vacation Rentals ,
VRBO.com
As evidenced by our list of stories below, it was a relatively quiet week for online travel....more
This week’s Online Travel Update features updates to a number of stories that we covered previously – online vaccination records, Apple’s privacy policy and the many challenges associated with regulating online platforms’...more
2/5/2021
/ Advertising ,
Airlines ,
Apple ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Data Privacy ,
Expedia ,
Online Travel Vendors ,
Passports ,
Privacy Policy ,
Television Commercials ,
Travelers ,
Vaccinations ,
Vaccine Passports ,
Virus Testing ,
Web Tracking
This week’s Update contains something for everyone – currencies and payments, infringement claims and acquisitions. Enjoy....more
1/25/2021
/ Acquisitions ,
Airlines ,
Booking.com ,
Breach of Contract ,
Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Hotels ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Investment ,
Online Travel Vendors ,
Partnerships ,
Southwest Airlines ,
Trademark Infringement ,
Travelers ,
TripAdvisor ,
Trivago ,
Unjust Enrichment
This week’s Update features a variety of stories (all of which pale in comparison to the tumultuous events last week in Washington, D.C.), including two stories about the recent antitrust claims brought by Fareportal against...more
This week’s Update features a variety of stories – short-term rental, airlines, resort fees and antitrust developments in both the United States and the EU. Enjoy....more
12/28/2020
/ Airlines ,
Digital Marketplace ,
Digital Service Providers ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Fees ,
Google ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Online Marketplace ,
Online Travel Vendors ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Rental Property ,
Resorts & Restaurants ,
Sales & Distribution Agreements ,
Search Engines ,
Short-Term Lease ,
Travelers ,
TripAdvisor ,
Vacation Rentals
Beginning with this edition, we’ve rebranded the name of our weekly Update from “OTA & Travel Distribution Update” to “Online Travel Update.” Why, you ask, did we change the name that has served us so well these past five...more
11/25/2020
/ AirBnB ,
Airlines ,
B2B Transactions ,
Booking.com ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Hotels ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Online Travel Vendors ,
Rental Property ,
Short-Term Lease ,
Startups ,
Travelers ,
Vacation Rentals
What started out as a relatively quiet week in the distribution world ended with a flurry of activity and announcements (some were expected and some were not). I hope you enjoy....more
11/2/2020
/ Airlines ,
Antitrust Litigation ,
Booking.com ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Expedia ,
Google ,
Hotels ,
Online Travel Vendors ,
Partnerships ,
Travelers ,
TripAdvisor
This week’s Update features two stories on the growing (temporary?) phenomenon of using hotel guest rooms and other public spaces for those seeking an alternative arrangement to working from home and how those new remote work...more
10/19/2020
/ Airlines ,
Cookies ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Data Privacy ,
Expedia ,
Google ,
Hospitality Industry ,
Hotels ,
Office Space ,
Online Travel Vendors ,
Partnerships ,
Popular ,
Rate Parity Agreement ,
Remote Working ,
Rental Property ,
Search Engines ,
Travelers ,
Vacation Rentals
This week’s Update features a variety of stories, including the big three industry players, Trip.com, Expedia and Booking.com; the always insightful update on the current status of airline distribution; and details on...more
10/5/2020
/ AirBnB ,
Airlines ,
Algorithms ,
Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) ,
Booking.com ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Expedia ,
Hotels ,
Online Travel Vendors ,
Rental Property ,
Short-Term Lease ,
Subscription Services ,
Travelers
This week’s Update features a number of stories on short-term rentals, which is a trend that we will likely see continue as interest continues to grow over Airbnb’s long-awaited IPO. Enjoy....more
9/28/2020
/ AirBnB ,
Airlines ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Expedia ,
Hotels ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Marriott ,
Online Travel Vendors ,
Rental Property ,
Short-Term Lease ,
Travelers ,
United Arab Emirates (UAE) ,
Vacation Rentals
Pandemic, protests and riots and now wildfires. To say 2020 has been a challenging year is an understatement.
As I anticipated, with summer now officially behind us, things have again picked up in the distribution world....more
9/18/2020
/ AirBnB ,
Airlines ,
Booking.com ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Delta Airlines ,
Expedia ,
False Advertising ,
Hotels ,
Online Travel Vendors ,
Rental Property ,
Travelers ,
Vacation Rentals
Parity Commitments Extended by Expedia and Booking.com -
(“Expedia, Booking.com voluntarily extend 'price parity' antitrust commitments, Aug 14, 2020 via MLEX Insight)
While the European Commission continues its...more
8/24/2020
/ Airlines ,
Asia ,
Booking.com ,
Collaboration ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
E-Commerce ,
European Commission ,
Expedia ,
Google ,
Hotels ,
Online Travel Vendors ,
Partnerships ,
Rate Parity Agreement ,
Refunds ,
Rental Property ,
Search Engines ,
Travelers ,
Traveling Employee
Below is an abbreviated version of this week’s OTA &Travel Distribution Update. Enjoy....more
8/14/2020
/ Airlines ,
Booking.com ,
China ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Restructuring ,
Direct to Consumer Sales ,
Financial Distress ,
Foreign Relations ,
Hotels ,
Online Travel Vendors ,
Rental Property ,
Revenue Growth ,
Short-Term Lease ,
Travelers ,
TripAdvisor
Several themes emerged in this week’s stories, including the bullish return of short-term rentals and the continued direct booking efforts by airlines and the metasearch sites seeking to serve them. Enjoy....more
7/17/2020
/ Airlines ,
Booking.com ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Expedia ,
Health and Safety ,
Hospitality Industry ,
Hotels ,
Mobile Devices ,
Online Travel Vendors ,
Partnerships ,
Popular ,
Rental Property ,
Singapore ,
Surcharges ,
Travelers ,
Vacation Rentals