Dennis Schaal, Skift
TripAdvisor still isn't crazy about Google emphasizing its own travel businesses ahead of those of competitors. Still, in the wacky world of online travel marketing, metas will advertise in other metas when the financials work in their favor. User experience? It isn't always the best.
1 month ago
Associated Press
Normally we'd say this is a typical congressional letter to a regulator that will come to nothing. After all, TripAdvisor has already started placing notifications above hotel listings where there are allegations of rampant crime. However, this is Trump's Federal Trade Commission, the one that will likely gut net neutrality rules. So all bets are off.
12 months ago
Patrick Whyte, Skift
Two deals in the space of a week show how serious Skyscanner is about improving the content it offers to customers. The days of it being a pure price-comparison site are definitely over.
1 year ago
Associated Press
TripAdvisor let down its users when it deleted reviews about rape allegations, although there has to be a balance between allegations and verified facts. We look forward to seeing TripAdvisor appending online badges next to hotels that are prone to violence and discrimination.
1 year ago
Sean O'Neill, Skift
This is a decent exit for the investors in ReviewPro and a wake-up call to a Western hotel industry ignoring China's tech scene. But it is also a validation of ReviewPro's particular approach of giving hotels actionable analytics on guests for sales and marketing, and revenue management -- and not just monitoring TripAdvisor ratings.
2 years ago
Martin Soler and Daniel E. Craig, Skift
Google has fought and annoyed TripAdvisor and Yelp for years when it comes to user reviews. The search giant obviously has the scale to compete and is now putting new emphasis on its own user reviews, but it has to prove it has the focus to upend the review balance of power.
2 years ago
Dennis Schaal, Skift
Let's be clear: Not all hotel guests and review-writers are angels. But the solution is not dodgy hotel contracts and taking punitive actions against customers. Business owners, as well as consumers, should remember the wisdom of the crowds is pretty good at protecting from one-sided and impure reviewers.
2 years ago
Nicole Piper, Bloomberg
Yelp has a tremendous opportunity in local advertising but there is also intense competition. One big caution is that half of Yelp's traffic comes from Google and that makes it way too dependent on a company which isn't exactly a fan.
2 years ago
Dennis Schaal, Skift
If Google is using the "wisdom of the crowds" to determine how it arranges restaurant information in search results then in a lot of ways it believes professional reviews, and especially those from its Zagat franchise, trump user reviews. But when it gets down to displaying the text of diners' reviews, Google unfairly believes that its own consumer reviews are the fairest of them all.
2 years ago
Dennis Schaal, Skift
Lots of consumers start their trip-planning with flights. Expedia will use its customer reviews of flights to spur more flight bookings but the company is also focusing on up-selling and facilitating smooth navigation to hotel and vacation-package options.
2 years ago
Dennis Schaal, Skift
TripAdvisor has taken a few lumps in the UK and the bashing by a prominent UK critic in The Guardian undoubtedly was a factor in Kaufer's decision to pen a rare, formal response to a pundit.
2 years ago
Dennis Schaal, Skift
We don't know the terms of the transaction. Still, messaging, mobile and review analytics all make for a nice concoction and the two companies will likely be better for the mixture.
2 years ago