Why Uber and Airbnb Are the Only Truly Disruptive Travel Companies of This Century
Skift Take
I hate to see so many talented travel startup people working away at ideas that obviously have little chance to succeed. Do we need another trip-planning app or metasearch company? These are very early days for Uber and Airbnb, but it is totally evident that they have set out to do something different.
For years travel industry insiders have bemoaned the fact that big, successful brands haven’t emerged since companies such as Expedia, TripAdvisor, and to a lesser extent, Kayak, made their marks at least a decade ago.
In the interim in Europe, brands such as Booking.com, Skyscanner, and Trivago have arrived on the scene, and in China Qunar and Ctrip are becoming household names.
The emergence of Uber and Airbnb, with valuations that dwarf those of major car rental companies and hotel chains, truly takes things to a new level as the two have the potential to be global brands despite the regulatory issues they must overcome.
Uber and Airbnb seemingly came out of nowhere, and they and their competitors are transformative in the way they are changing widely held notions of the hired car business and lodging.
Uber just landed an additional $1.2 billion in funding at a $17 billion valuation and its mobile app, along with that of its competitor Lyft, is driving incremental demand and helping to change what consumers have come to expect in car-rental services.
Airbnb, too, which has a whopping valuation north of $
