Tourexpi
“Most hospitality establishments’ would currently describe their relationship with online platforms as one-sided and dependent. Today’s announcement by the European Commission gives hoteliers hope that this relationship can become genuinely bilateral, where establishments engage with platforms on an equal footing”, said HOTREC Director General Marie Audren.
She added: “We are optimistic that the European Parliament and EU Member States can, under the Digital Services and Markets Acts, support the creation of a conducive environment for small businesses that want to be in control of their digital distribution strategies.”
Hospitality establishments and hotels in particular largely depend on platforms to obtain bookings and reservations. Online Travel Agents (OTAs) have grown tremendously over the past two decades, with roughly 30% of all hotel room bookings made online via an OTA intermediary in 2019. This share has grown by 10 percentage points since 2013. The devastating impact of the Covid-19 crisis on the hospitality sector has further increased the sector’s reliance on these platforms.
OTAs are unavoidable business partners for hotels and play every trick in the book to maintain a strong relationship of dependency for hoteliers. Today, a hotelier is not equipped to challenge price parity clauses, unilateral changes to terms and conditions and constricted access to guest and marketing data generated by transactions that concern that hotelier, among other issues.
Any attempt by a hotelier to break free from online travel agents’ rules is met with what amount to sanctions in practice, such as downgrading, dimming or even removing offers of services. Hoteliers however have no means to retaliate to unfair treatment from OTAs other than ‘David vs Goliath’ litigation, where OTAs have much deeper pockets than a family-run hotel to pay for legal fees upfront.
One single platform, Booking.com, accounts for over 65% of hotel bookings made via OTAs in Europe. Most other OTA platforms replicate the practices and behaviour of the dominant platform, which gives hoteliers very little choice in practice between competing platforms.
HOTREC also welcomes new rules under the Digital Services Act ensuring that platforms are accountable for content and the introduction of new data sharing requirements. This is a must to ensure that ‘what is illegal offline is also illegal online’, with platforms taking responsibility and liability for the role they exert. HOTREC believes such rules are key to tackle offers of short-term rental accommodation which do not meet local, regional or national legal requirements.
For further information: www.hotrec.eu
Bildnachweis: © IHA
The most interesting news
ITB Berlin NOW Convention: Rethinking tourism
More than 200 leading international speakers representing airlines, the hotel and cruise industries as well as organisers will talk about the future of the tourism industry – Focus on marketing, destinations and sustainable travel at the global tra
France, Germany tighten COVID-19 measures at border
French cross-border workers will require antigen test to enter Germany from March 2.
Emirates Economy Class customers with new option to purchase empty adjoining seats
Emirates’ Economy Class customers can now enjoy even more personal space and privacy onboard with the ability to purchase up to three empty adjoining seats on their flight.
Amadeus and Microsoft form strategic partnership to drive future innovation in travel
Amadeus and Microsoft today announce a global strategic partnership that will harness cloud technology to innovate and explore new products and solutions and create smoother travel experiences in the future.
Condor flies to Beirut and Sulaimaniyya
Condor is flying from Dusseldorf to the Lebanese capital Beirut and to Sulaimaniyya in the Autonomous Region of Kurdistan in Iraq in time for the Whitsun vacations.
Emirates Group signs MoU with Roads and Transport Authority (RTA)
Agreement to deepen strategic cooperation in area of asset management.
Emirates Group reaffirms commitment to wildlife and habitat conservation
On the occasion of World Wildlife Day, the Emirates Group has reaffirmed its long-standing commitment to protecting wildlife and habitats. It also shone the spotlight on conservation efforts across the organisation at an online Environment Forum for
Spain to tighten curfews, limit travel for Easter
Country hopes to prevent 4th wave of contagion.
Lufthansa Group prepares for demand growth in 2021 after operating loss of 5.5 billion euros
Carsten Spohr, CEO of Deutsche Lufthansa AG, says:
Hotelbeds signs partnership with Turespaña to attract high value US travellers
Hotelbeds, the world’s leading bedbank, has today announced its first ever partnership agreement with Turespaña, Spain’s national tourism board, designed to capitalise on Hotelbeds’ leading position in the US outbound market to drive significa
ITB Berlin NOW: Events and business travel on the way to a new normal
The ITB Berlin NOW Convention addresses the challenges facing the MICE and business travel industries – Digitalisation and sustainable travel as ways out of the crisis – Full details of the programme of the world’s largest think tank are availa
People want to travel again and a large majority of the population is planning trips in 2021
ITB Berlin and Statista present a new survey on travel behaviour in Germany, the US and China.
Zimbabwe: Easing restrictions bring hope to Victoria Falls
People are rejoicing in tourist town Vic Falls, hoping revival of tourism will bring business.
TUI AGM on 25 March 2021 – New members for the Supervisory Board
Dr Jutta Dönges and Janina Kugel proposed for election to the Supervisory Board – Agreement with the Economic Stabilisation Fund (WSF) to be implemented.
Emirates and Dubai Health Authority to create digital verification of COVID-19 medical records
Dubai to become one of the world’s first cities to implement digital verification of passenger medical records relating to COVID-19 testing and vaccination
EU: Unemployment rises to more than 7 percent in January
15.7M people unemployed in EU as of first month of 2021, says Eurostat.
Europe’s Travel & Tourism sector calls on EU governments to chart restart plan in time for Summer
The European Tourism Manifesto alliance, a group of more than 60 public and private travel and tourism organisations and the voice of the sector in Europe, today unveiled a series of joint recommendations for EU Member States on how to relaunch trave
Human Rights in Tourism - More Important than Ever in the Crisis and Beyond
The Roundtable Human Rights in Tourism would like to put human rights and tourism on the agenda and raise awareness of tourism professionals at ITB Berlin Now.
Britons' demand for travel to Turkey on rise
UK residents rush to book their favorite destinations in Turkey as vaccination process boosts optimism.
