Articles tagged “metasearch”

Here's an unorthodox thought in business: TripAdvisor CEO Steve Kaufer knows that the company's value proposition for its customers can remain strong even when the financials face difficulties every once in a while. That's a truism that sometimes gets lost when pundits focus merely on stock price variations.

Vacation rental metasearch isn't necessarily ahead of its time, although it certainly isn't easy given the complexity of the inventory and the required backend technology. Still, any company needs to execute to make a go of it, and that appears to have been a quality in short supply at Tripping.

GoEuro CEO Naren Shaam said his company is having strong growth in helping consumers book intercity trips on their smartphones. But can he guide his company into profitability?

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.

Much of the metasearch business is beyond the control of the metasearch companies themselves because their largest advertisers can switch things up five minutes ago. Just ask Trivago, and to a lesser extent, TripAdvisor. The best they can hope to do is to diversify their advertiser base and to keep plugging away.

Booking.com is Booking Holdings' favored child, but with the addition of HotelsCombined, it is apparent that the parent company still sees plenty of opportunity for its Kayak unit in metasearch worldwide. This deal will help Kayak expand in Asia Pacific, and will give HotelsCombined additional resources as well.

It’s dangerous to give Amazon breathing room in any industry; better to think through its implications for travel today. Amazon is not simply a threat, it offers lessons and opportunities for travel executives as well.

Some airlines will not be happy that Kayak has lent its credibility and, in effect, its customer base, to startups that specialize in travel claims compensation. The claims cost airlines money. But Kayak still likes doing things a bit different from the other global online players.

Amazon likely has a role to play in the future of travel distribution, marketing, or devices — if not all three. Travel leaders need to prepare today or risk being caught flat-footed tomorrow.

In some ways, Trivago and TripAdvisor find themselves in similar situations, although TripAdvisor has more upside because of its global brand awareness and the breadth of its offerings. But both need time to play the long game. In Trivago's case, it is now seeing alternative accommodations as a potential life line.