Sean O'Neill

Uh-oh. Trivago changed its user interface again. Last time it did this, it referred fewer customers to some advertisers and prompted Booking Holdings to pull back from advertising on it. Trivago is betting that Booking won't retaliate for this new effort. Daring!

Travel Tripper is taking on a distressed asset, Pegasus. Meh. But what's interesting is that Accel-KKR is backing the deal. The support by the private equity firm is yet another sign of more rollups of hotel tech companies to come against a backdrop of hotel software investments by Amadeus, Sabre, and Shiji.

Oyo has a seductive model of renovating budget hotels, running them efficiently through technology, and marketing them directly to consumers. But the startup risks imperial overreach by entering markets like the U.S. that differ significantly from its core markets in India and China.

American, Delta, and United have partnered with tech firm ATPCO and business travel startup TripActions to show how they want their fares displayed on websites other than their own. Expect others to follow this model.

AutoCamp has built an outdoor brand on offering bookings for glamping, or camping in amenity-filled recreational vehicles and luxury vans. Given a new $115 million investment, it will expand across the U.S. Read on for other funding news, too, from Intelity, Zingle, Recharge, and LuggageHero.

Few companies other than activist investor Elliott Management expressed a serious interest in acquiring Travelport. Elliott twice lost potential private equity partners after they reviewed Travelport's books. The deal price is underwhelming, and that's a signal that some things haven't been going the company's way.

Switchfly, a travel tech firm specializing in loyalty and e-commerce upselling, has been taken over by private equity firms Golub Capital and L Capital.

Airbnb's move to offer more meetings spaces represents an example of one of Skift's 2019 Megatrends, as many giant online booking companies are looking for their next phases of growth by expanding into new areas.

Itilite, which is sort of an Indian clone of TripActions and Rocketrip, has raised funds for its online booking tool, which encourages business travelers to keep their trip costs in check. VDroom, a visual asset management service, and Flyiin, an airline distribution tech provider, also announced funding rounds.

MakeMyTrip continues to drive more online hotel bookings in India, despite protests by some hotel owner groups about its allegedly excessive commissions. The company must tread carefully as it tries to woo online customers with discounts while maintaining good relationships with its partners.