Sean O'Neill

Sean O’Neill is Skift’s Senior Hospitality Editor. Sean’s forte is reporting, and he’s broken multiple hotel industry scoops. He has also conducted 1:1 interviews on stage with the CEOs of Marriott, Hilton, IHG, Hyatt, and Wyndham.

Online Travel

Kayak to Help Flyers Get Compensated for Delayed and Canceled Flights

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.

Sean O'Neill | 8 years ago

Airlines

Airlines Test Adding Metasearch to Their Websites

If they can't beat the online travel companies, airlines might as well try to copy those companies' slickest moves. A couple of carriers are testing the display of flights on rival airlines in an attempt to prevent consumers from clicking away to shop elsewhere.

Sean O'Neill | 8 years ago

Online Travel

Divvy Raises $10.5 Million to Tame Expense Reports: Travel Startup Funding This Week

Divvy is an expense management startup that faces formidable competition from incumbent players, such as Concur, Certify, and Expensify. To draw users, it's offering business travel booking discounts and tools. Clever.

Sean O'Neill | 8 years ago

Airlines

Airlines to Test Consumer Payments That Bypass Credit Cards for Direct Sales

Care to buy a plane ticket without needing a credit card? Soon a few airlines will test enabling air travelers to pay for their tickets by taking payments directly from consumer accounts. Three cheers for testing innovations.

Sean O'Neill | 8 years ago

Online Travel

Cruise Agency Dreamlines Raises $55 Million: Travel Startup Funding This Week

Cruise lines better hope that Dreamlines and other online booking tools for cruise travel don't interfere too much with their long-standing business models.

Sean O'Neill | 8 years ago

Online Travel

Despegar Attempts to Expand Further Beyond Flights

Despegar will need to become even more of a force in Latin America if it hopes to tempt major shareholder Expedia Group into acquiring it.

Sean O'Neill | 8 years ago

Online Travel

Skift Tech Forum Preview: Travelport’s CEO on a New Era for Airline Merchandising

CEO Gordon Wilson of Travelport says his technology company is making it easier for airlines to display on travel agency "shelves" their content in the way they want. If true, that could significantly help airlines maximize their revenue.

Sean O'Neill | 8 years ago

Online Travel

Agoda Names New CEO as It Aims to Go Global

Agoda's new CEO John Brown will be leading the company to increasingly push into Europe and the Americas, beyond its traditional online travel agency turf of Asia Pacific. The early numbers show that parent company Booking Holdings is putting its money where its mouth is.

Sean O'Neill | 8 years ago

Online Travel

Amadeus Sees No Impact Yet on Airlines’ Pushback With New Distribution Models

For a couple of decades, distribution technology giants like Amadeus dictated contract terms to the airlines. But airline groups are leading a revolt to try to impose a new model on the middlemen. It's too early to say who will get the upper hand.

Sean O'Neill | 8 years ago

Online Travel

Travelport Lost Lucrative Flight Centre Contract to Distribution Rivals

No word on yet on what activist hedge fund investor Paul Singer of Elliott Management might try to pressure Travelport do this year. But research analysts expect that, at the very least, the travel technology company will be pressed to spin off its fast-growing eNett payments business.

Sean O'Neill | 8 years ago