Articles tagged “online travel agencies”

Our channel checks and industry data point to a relevant future for blockchain technology in travel distribution. However, proponents will need to move fast in creating compelling applications that perform better than what's already out there.

The conventional wisdom is that major online travel agencies make it impossible for their smaller counterparts to break through. Kiwi.com is challenging that thesis, though it is very much early days.

Ctrip, along with its partially owned sister brand Qunar, dominates Chinese online travel sales, but it has begun to lean heavily on its recently acquired flight search company, Skyscanner, to boost overseas sales.

Hopper said it is on track to process about $500 million in gross bookings — a number much larger than actual revenue — this year. Its expansion into hotel bookings would bring fatter commissions and hopefully more engagement. But the company will go up against better-funded players. All bets are off.

For hotels looking to drive direct bookings, simply offering more competitive pricing or better loyalty programs is no longer enough to compete with online travel agencies.

On its own, this is no big deal. Not many people book JetBlue tickets on Vegas.com or whatscheaper.com. But JetBlue called this phase one, so we'll be watching closely to see the airline's next step.

The online travel agencies — as the Apex Predators and beneficiaries at the top of the current distribution scheme — aren't likely to rush in to invest in a technology that democratizes access to travel content.

TripAdvisor's struggles clearly have to do with strategy, execution and competitive pressures, and can't be neatly laid solely at Medros' doorstep. That would be very unfair.

With its IPO on Wednesday, Despegar became the world's seventh-largest online travel company by market cap. Its bosses talk a good game. But its major markets may have near-term hiccups ahead.

Priceline's acquisition of Momondo strengthens Kayak in regions where it had less market share, including the UK, Nordics, and Russia. Keeping Momondo out of the hands of a rival, or a potential one, also protects the Kayak brand and Priceline as a whole.