Airbnb, Others Will Pony Up Data and 10 Other Top Digital Stories This Week

Airbnb, Expedia and Others Agree to Landmark Data-Sharing Deal With European Union: It’s hard to know whether greater transparency will benefit or hinder these short-term rental platforms. Might lawmakers use the information as a stick to wield over the industry?

Trump Administration Orders Shiji to Sell Hotel Tech Firm StayNTouch: This is a highly unusual action. It’s unclear why the U.S. government would believe a company would compromise the sensitive personal data of U.S. citizens just because it’s based in China.

Hostmaker Collapse Prompts Further Consolidation in Europe’s Short-Term Rental Market: In a growing sector like this where there is a race to scale up, casualties will always exist. Houst will be hoping to capitalize on Hostmaker’s misfortune.

Hostelworld Still Pushing on Expansion Even With $4.5 Million Coronavirus Profit Hit: There’s not much travel companies can do about the coronavirus outbreak. Like many of its peers, Hostelworld is having to execute its growth strategy in an unfavorable environment.

Latin America’s Despegar Will Have to Navigate Coronavirus Currency Impact: Coronavirus has caused turmoil in the global financial markets, which has devalued several key currencies and made foreign trips costlier. But devaluation may also make potential acquisition targets cheaper for Despegar, the region’s largest online travel agency.

ITB Berlin’s Cancellation Had Only a Mild Impact on Short-Term Rental Owners: An upside for cities like Berlin that tighten short-term rental supply through regulation is that they’re less prone to price and occupancy shocks when something like the trade fair ITB Berlin cancels at the last minute.

Yonder Raises $4 Million for Nature Travel: Travel Startup Funding Last Week: Yonder, Airside, GogoBus, and TPConnects announced investments this week, showing that startup funding continued despite the recent global coronavirus crisis.

Hotels Strive to Get Savvier About Forecasting Total Revenue: Software may be eating the world, but in hotel tech it’s still munching on the appetizers. Hotels have only begun to automate operational forecasts, such as how much revenue restaurants on a property may bring in or how much group business a hotel might steal from a crosstown rival.

Coronavirus Concerns Overshadow Eventbrite’s Strong Year-End Finish: Eventbrite closed 2019 stronger than expected, but the company’s stock still stumbled after last week’s earnings call. The events industry is clearly at the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak.

TravelPerk Builds Audited Carbon Offset Program for Biz Travel: It’s refreshing to hear a travel management company call out all the greenwashing taking place across the industry. Complex problems require creative solutions, and it’s good to see travel taking its carbon problem more seriously.

Important Date Changes for Skift Forum Europe and Skift Forum Asia: We’ve decided to move two of our forums to new dates in light of the coronavirus outbreak. Skift Forum Europe will now be held on June 29–30 in Madrid, and Skift Forum Asia in Singapore on Oct. 13–15. We hope you can join us for these seminal travel industry events.