Hilton CEO Looks to Airbnb as Hedge Against Power of Expedia and Booking.com
Photo Credit: Hilton CEO Christopher Nassetta believes competition from Airbnb could indirectly help his company and other hotels negotiate better rates with online travel agencies. Hilton / Skift
Skift Take
In some cases, the hotel-online travel agency relationship is still a tense situation, but for most big hotel companies, it's still business as usual.
Most major hotel company CEOs are still insistent that their direct booking pushes are working, but they're candid about also maintaining ties with major online travel agencies like Expedia and Booking.com.
Hilton CEO Christopher Nassetta, when asked about the looming threat of Airbnb and short-term rentals recently, said he actually thinks Airbnb appears to be becoming more like an online travel agency (OTA) and that's actually a "good thing" for hotels because it forces the other companies like Expedia and Booking.com to be more competitive.
"Competition is a good thing," Nassetta said during Hilton's second quarter earnings call last month. "And there being more competition in the home-sharing business and more – by the way, you know my fundamental belief, is it's just a different travel occasion, trip occasion. We are not directly competitive with what they're doing. So, more competition, I think is good there.
"More competition – them morphing in whatever ways to feel
