Articles tagged “booking holdings”

Booking Holdings’ Agoda Takes a Distinctive Approach on Short-Term Rentals

Dan Peltier, Skift

This Is a Pivotal Moment for Booking Site Marketing Strategies

Dennis Schaal, Skift

Suddenly those seemingly free-spending online travel agencies, which have made Google rich, are toning down their big-spending ways. Google shouldn't be too worried: Expedia and Booking Holdings are still spending billions of dollars on search-engine marketing, but they've just become a bit more stingy. And, they hope, wise.

Expedia Is Growing Alternative Accommodations Faster But Booking Isn’t Slowing Down

Seth Borko, Skift Research

Booking sites are offering more types of travel products and services on their platforms. Of these verticals, alternative accommodations are a highly contested space where Booking and Airbnb lead for now.

Booking Holdings Bought HotelsCombined for Only $140 Million

Dennis Schaal, Skift

Don't you just love those proverbial tuck-in acquisitions? Booking Holdings didn't break the bank for either HotelsCombined ($140 million) or FareHarbor ($250 million). Sometimes making smaller bets is a much smarter strategy than gargantuan deals, but only time will tell.

Booking Holdings Says Half Its Customers Now Come Direct: Will It Be a Game Changer?

Sean O'Neill, Skift

Some hotel groups will be jealous of Booking Holdings' ability to have one out of every two of its customers booking travel on its brand sites and apps without having to buy online ads to acquire them.

Booking Holdings Sacrifices Growth for Profit

Sean O'Neill, Skift

The online travel titan faces a reality check after years of extraordinary growth. Booking Holdings forecast that third-quarter growth in its accommodation room nights booked rate would be between 6 percent and 9 percent, well below the 20 percent range typical in the past.

The Biggest Inventory Challenges for Online Booking Sites: Latest from Skift Research

Seth Borko, Skift Research

Many online travel agencies are no longer specialists in one product, instead aiming to become one-stop shops. The platform that a booking site can offer is a key part of its competitive moat and the contours of supply at Booking Holding and Expedia vary widely from each other.

Expedia’s HomeAway Bet Is Starting to Pay Off

Gerrit De Vynck , Bloomberg

The battle between Expedia, Booking, and Airbnb has only just begun, and it won't just be over short-term rentals.

Expedia Marketing Spend Levels May Reflect a Changing Advertising Environment

Dennis Schaal, Skift

Has the worm turned? Have Expedia and Booking.com found a way to trim the growth of their bloated advertising spend? That would not be great news for some advertising platforms, and would be a significant change in the way the largest players conduct their marketing operations.

Trivago Lays Off Staff in Strategy Shift to Emphasize Profitability Over Growth

Dennis Schaal, Skift

A lot of Trivago's problems, including an advertising diss from Booking Holdings, are beyond the company's control so it is doing what it can, namely reducing advertising spend and headcount in an attempt to get into the black. Speaking of Booking Holdings, Trivago may need a dot-com-like Priceline comeback to right the ship.

Oral History: Ebookers and LastMinute Deals Showed Mergers Can Be a Blood Sport

Dennis Schaal, Skift

When mergers go awry, it isn't always merely because the acquired company was a dog. Sometimes the purchaser likewise screws the whole thing up.

Airbnb Could Be Worth More Than Any Hotel Company

Deanna Ting, Skift

The battle between Airbnb and Booking (and everyone else in online travel) is just beginning.