- Posts by Greg Duff
PrincipalGreg is Chair of the firm's national Hospitality, Travel & Tourism practice, which is directed at the variety of matters faced by hospitality and travel industry members, including purchase and sales agreements, management ...
CMA Seeks to Educate UK Hoteliers [PARITY]
("Competition watchdog urges hotels to take advantage of demise of price parity," The Caterer - Latest Hospitality News, July 5, 2017)
If you recall, one of the key takeaways from the European Commission’s recently released study on the effectiveness of the narrow parity compromise reached by EU competition authorities with Booking.com (and subsequently Expedia) was the fact that EU hoteliers were largely unaware of the compromise or its effects. The UK’s Competition and Market Authority (CMA) released last week a bulletin intending to change that. The CMA issued a single-page overview of the Booking.com compromise advising UK hoteliers of their ability to offer different rates and availability to competing OTAs. For anyone still unfamiliar with the Booking.com compromise, the overview provides a clear and concise summary of the UK’s (and the majority of EU member states’) current approach to parity.
Our weekly OTA & Travel Distribution Update for the week ending June 30, 2017 is below. A mix of stories in this week’s update...
Airbnb Continues Its March Toward Mainstream Lodging (SHORT-TERM RENTALS)
("Airbnb signs partnership with Flight Centre’s corporate travel brands," Tnooz News Feed, June 29, 2017)
Abnb announced last week its agreement with Flight Centre Travel Group to feature portions of Airbnb’s inventory with Flight Centre’s corporate travel brands FCM Travel Solutions and Corporate Traveler. Although this newly announced partnership applies only in Australia and New Zealand, it is yet another example of Airbnb’s ongoing efforts to grow its presence in the mainstream (and lucrative) business travel market. According to Airbnb’s announcement of the new partnership, at least 10% of Airbnb’s bookings now come from business travelers.
This week’s GSB OTA & Travel Distribution Update for the week ending June 23, 2017 is below. A variety of stories this week.
Initiative 124 (aka I-124), the ballot measure approved by voters in November 2016 that establishes several new purported "safety and health" standards for hotel employees in the city of Seattle, opens the door for unprecedented exposures for Seattle's hotel operators. Since its enactment last December, Initiative 124 has given rise to several questions about how, if at all, insurance policies might respond to allegations under the new law.
Our weekly client OTA & Travel Distribution Update for the week ending June 16, 2017 is below. Several interesting stories this week...
This week’s OTA & Travel Distribution Update for the week ending June 9, 2017 is below. This week’s Update features a variety of stories.
This week’s client OTA & Travel Distribution Update for the week ending June 2, 2017 is below. A short update this week...
This week’s OTA & Travel Distribution Update for the week ending May 26, 2017 is below. A short, but significant update this week.
Our weekly OTA & Travel Distribution Update for the week ending May 21, 2017 is below. Nothing earth shattering this week...
This week’s GSB weekly client OTA & Travel Distribution Update for the week ending May 12, 2017 is below.
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- Rhetoric Over AHLA’s Planned Lobbying Efforts Ramps Up [OTA]. Not surprisingly, Priceline Group CEO Glenn Fogel has a slightly different perspective on the OTA’s influence and control over the online travel agency industry. Responding to recent reports (see last week’s Update) outlining AHLA’s plans to lobby Trump administration officials over Expedia’s and Priceline Group’s dominance of the online travel agency industry, Glenn objected to AHLA’s characterization of Expedia’s and Priceline Group’s control as a monopolistic. According to Glenn, such statements, when considering Priceline Group’s share of the global travel industry (as opposed to AHLA’s use of the U.S. online travel industry – a much smaller denominator) constitute “misstatements” and untrue “allegations.” I suspect Glenn’s comments are not the last that we will see coming out of the OTAs regarding AHLA’s planned campaign.
Priceline Group CEO Faults Hotel Association for False Allegations
Skift Travel News, May 11, 2017
There is ample competition among hotels, online travel agencies, and airlines in the U.S. travel marketplace as all of these sectors have seen a spate of consolidation. It may make sense business-wise for these companies, but none of it is particularly good for consumers or competition.
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About the Editor
Greg Duff founded and chairs Foster Garvey’s national Hospitality, Travel & Tourism group. His practice largely focuses on operations-oriented matters faced by hospitality industry members, including sales and marketing, distribution and e-commerce, procurement and technology. Greg also serves as counsel and legal advisor to many of the hospitality industry’s associations and trade groups, including AH&LA, HFTP and HSMAI.
