Yixin Ng, Skift
Line Travel Japan’s new rewards initiative is a neat, innovative way to upsell online travel agencies, but it represents a whole lot more. It's a sign of loftier metasearch ambitions to own customers in a fight against common enemies — the lowest-price quandary and the Google behemoth.
11 hours ago
Sean O'Neill, Skift
The online juggernaut isn't satisfied with dominating urban markets. Airbnb wants to take the beaches and the mountains, too, in the battle for short-term rental bookings. So the company is becoming savvier in how it approaches local property managers.
18 hours ago
Sean O'Neill, Skift
Sabre's acquisition of Radixx is yet another sign that the travel technology giant is shoring up its competitive position vis-à-vis its rival Amadeus in the lucrative market for selling airlines operational technology.
20 hours ago
D-EDGE + Skift
A new whitepaper examining distribution trends in Europe’s online hotel sector suggests that flexibility is a critical success factor for the region’s hospitality operators. Hotel executives must constantly review and optimize their channel mix if they hope to succeed and thrive in this highly competitive environment.
6 months ago
Raini Hamdi, Skift
India’s largest online travel agency may beat analysts’ expectations and break even sooner rather than later. Ctrip, which now owns nearly half of the company, could be a factor. Another is boosting hotel content, which offers higher margins than air.
22 hours ago
Dennis Schaal, Skift
The Booking.com flight partnership with eTraveli doesn't seem particularly seamless because travelers still have to hop over to a third-party site, Gotogate, to complete their reservations. Still, the deal is another step in Booking.com's evolution from hotel-only provider in its early days to well-rounded online travel company.
3 days ago
Dennis Schaal, Skift
The Libra cryptocurrency program is falling apart following regulatory pushback. Booking Holdings likely didn't want the hassle of being associated with such a controversial initiative, which may not get off the ground in the near term.
3 days ago
Jasmine Ganaishlal and Spencer Lee, Skift
This week in digital, we take a look at Booking Holdings' decision to pull back from Google's vacation rentals business. Meanwhile, change is in the air for Airbnb Experiences, at least in leadership, as the category continues to be unprofitable.
4 days ago
Sean O'Neill, Skift
Many airline executives insist that their so-called New Distribution Capability, or new method of sharing data for selling tickets, will hit a major target next year. But industry insiders say the target will be missed. To cope in the meantime, several airlines will expand the marketing for bundled fares under a confusing array of brand names.
1 week ago
Jasmine Ganaishlal and Spencer Lee, Skift
This week in digital, we take a closer look behind the collapse of Thomas Cook and what the company's failure to adjust to the changing economy means for the future of packaged vacations. Meanwhile, Southeast Asia's travel is on the rise thanks to the growth of budget hotels.
2 weeks ago
Raini Hamdi, Skift
Like low-cost carriers before them, low-cost hotel chains are playing a big role in the growth of online travel in Southeast Asia, according to a new Google report.
2 weeks ago
Jasmine Ganaishlal, Skift
Airbnb Experiences continues to expand as the company launches its first animal-friendly category. The company encourages animal lovers to put away their tech devices with the funny dog videos and connect with wildlife in a safer environment. It's just good business for Airbnb too.
2 weeks ago
