HomeAway: Airbnb's negative publicity "doesn't help us"
Skift Take
When HomeAway says Airbnb isn't a direct competitor, we think HomeAway doth protest too much. These markets will undoubtedly converge over the long term.
Airbnb's market of primary-home rentals is fundamentally different than HomeAway's second-home vacation-rental market, argues the CFO of HomeAway, but "when Airbnb gets a lot of bad news," such as when it is incorrectly declared illegal in New York City, "that doesn't help us."
Of course, Airbnb hasn't indeed been declared illegal in New York City, although the practices of some of its hosts clearly violate short-term rental laws.
Lynn Atchison, HomeAway's CFO, was fielding questions the other day at the Raymond James Internet/Software Crossover Conference in Half Moon Bay, California, and one thing was clear from her presentation: For HomeAway, Airbnb is the proverbial elephant in the room.
Atchison
