Hyatt Plays Hardball With Expedia Over Contract Negotiations
Photo Credit: The Driskill, in the Unbound Collection by Hyatt. Hyatt is currently in contract negotiations with Expedia. Hyatt Hotels / Hyatt
Skift Take
Hyatt, like every other hotel company out there, wants to get better rates from online travel agencies like Expedia. But does it have the scale (and the muscle) to do it?
What would happen if consumers couldn't book a Hyatt hotel on Expedia anymore?
That's a possibility, if reports hold true regarding Hyatt's current contract negotiations with Expedia Inc. According to Hotels Magazine, Hyatt hotel owners recently received a notification from the company of its intent to terminate its Corporate Lodging Agreement with Expedia if the two companies don't reach an agreement by July 31.
What's unclear, however, is whether this agreement impacts all of Hyatt's distribution for both leisure and corporate managed travel, or solely its corporate travel contracts.
Skift spoke to the author of the Hotels Magazine article, Kristie Dickinson, EVP of business development and marketing for CHMWarnick, an independent hotel asset management company. Dickinson, some of whose clients have received the note from Hyatt, "In the letter our owners received from Hyatt, it was clear that the termination of the Corporate Lodging Agreement meant that Expedia would no l
