Booking Holdings

Airbnb is clearly now well down the path toward a host-only fee structure. Chalk it up to its push toward onboarding hotels, which don't charge guest fees, and Airbnb's competition with Booking.com, which sees guest fees as unholy.

Agoda has been an online travel leader in Asia for more than a decade. CEO John Brown doesn't doubt that it will stay the same, but the new competition sure indicates winter is coming.

Get ready for some commotion in Las Vegas and other destinations where hotel resort fees are common. Will impacted hotels abandon Booking.com? Will resort fees lose their appeal for hotels? Will Expedia follow Booking's lead? The fun and gamesmanship are just starting.

Booking.com's hotel focus has given way to a strategy to serve travelers at every portion of the trip. TripAdvisor already does it, Expedia too. Airbnb is on that full-service road. So Booking.com will have plenty of company.

As Booking Holdings brands try to cross-sell their customers on more products, such as attractions, restaurants, and ground transportation, more companywide collaboration may be inevitable. No brand mergers are in the offing, but signs point toward more coordination.

Falling victim to the so-called law of large numbers, Booking Holdings saw its total revenues for the first quarter drop 3 percent from the prior year. Industry ears perked up when CEO Glenn Fogel mentioned mergers and acquisitions as a possible tactic to reignite growth a few times during an investor conference call.

What are some of the real learnings that Booking.com has come away with during its multiyear stint of doing business in China?

In an industry where diner data is gold, knowing how to use it to run a better business is mission critical to success.

Google is eating the world. When metasearch sites such as Trivago see a strategic benefit in increasing their advertising in Google metasearch, it's not only enough to make your head spin, but it's ominous from a competitive standpoint, as well.

This news will trigger responses from elated to downright furious, whether you're a Bonvoy member, Marriott hotel owner, a property manager, or just someone concerned about the growth of homesharing around the world.