Skift Take
Today's podcast discusses Choice Hotels' growth, Amadeus and Microsoft's AI, and Inspirato's losses.
Skift Daily Briefing Podcast
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Good morning from Skift. It’s Wednesday, November 8. Here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today.
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Episode Notes
Some analysts have argued that Choice Hotels International is too reliant on acquisitions to grow. But despite its ongoing push to acquire Wyndham, Choice believes the organic growth of its development pipeline is healthy, reports Senior Hospitality Editor Sean O’Neill.
Choice CEO Patrick Pacious said during its earnings call on Tuesday that he’s encouraged by the state of its pipeline. He noted that Choice averaged more than four openings per week through September. However, Joseph Greff, a J.P. Morgan analyst, said Choice Hotels’ legacy room count has registered, at best, only modest footprint growth.
As for its third quarter performance, O’Neill writes Choice Hotels generated $92 million in net income.
Next, Microsoft and travel technology company Amadeus are working together to develop artificial intelligence-related travel products. Travel Technology Reporter Justin Dawes highlights three of those innovations.
Cyril Tetaz, Amadeus’ executive vice president of airline solutions, outlined what Microsoft and his company have in store in an interview with Skift. Their initiatives include personalized airline homepages for customers, a system for airline crew rescheduling, and a platform to simplify the work of an airline analyst.
Tetaz added that Amadeus has many other initiatives in the works with Microsoft.
Finally, luxury hospitality brand Inspirato is continuing to see losses mount. But the company believes it can become profitable by cutting costs, writes Short-Term Rental Reporter Srividya Kalyanaraman.
Kalyanaraman reports Inspirato is burning cash at $15 million per quarter. It’s also grappling with a decrease in revenue. But Chief Financial Officer Robert Kaiden said Inspirato will save $50 million by the end of first quarter next year by cutting costs. He noted that roughly $30 million of those savings are expected from pruning the portfolio and terminating leases.
Inspirato posted a net loss of $25 million in the third quarter. Its revenue also decreased 11% from last year.
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Tags: amadeus, choice hotels, inspirato, microsoft, skift podcast, wyndham