Marriott’s New Expedia Contract and 5 Other Hospitality Trends This Week

First, read our companion articles on Marriott International’s new agreement with Expedia:
Marriott’s New Contract With Expedia Signals a Shift in the Direct Booking Wars: As the saying goes, keep your friends close and your rivals closer. Or in this case, that rival might turn out to be a friend, after all, once you’ve become the world’s biggest hotel company.

Expedia and Marriott Finally Sign a New Contract: For pundits looking for a headline that Marriott won reduced commissions from Expedia, the reality is likely far more complex than that, and it might take an audit over the next few years to truly sort out the revenue impact. The new deal has Marriott properties remaining for sale on Expedia brands, as the two companies march off into the sunset maintaining their rough-and-tumble, if symbiotic relationship.

What Retailer Muji Gets Right With Its New Flagship Hotel in Tokyo: More travelers want a lower price point without sacrificing aesthetics and vibe. Much can be learned from Muji’s example in Tokyo, particularly the product integration and room design.

Skift Forum Europe: Nordic Choice’s Lisa Farrar on Hotels Using Tech to Go Direct: Lisa Farrar, who leads a tech subsidiary for Nordic Choice Hotels, is a vocal advocate about how hotels can tighten control of their distribution and more effectively engage with their guests. You won’t want to miss hearing her talk at Skift Forum Europe in London on April 30.

Is Accor the Next Starwood? What’s Next for Hotel Mergers: Accor as a takeover target? Stranger things have happened. (Anbang, anyone?) No matter what transpires in hospitality going forward, though, it’s clear that consolidation is here to stay.

Room-Block Perks for Conference Guests Need More Promotion: It turns out loyalty status and the power of the corporate card are a couple of reasons conference attendees don’t book inside a hotel block. Event organizers should do a better job informing attendees of the perks that come from booking with the group.

GuestReady Acquires BnbLord in European Vacation Rental Rollup: Vacasa, Evolve, and other startups have stormed the U.S. vacation rental market by offering tech-savvy property management services. The business model is now about to sweep Europe, too.