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Scooped by
Roland Schegg
March 6, 1:03 PM
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"OpenAI built the checkout tech but couldn't get users to actually buy. That's a reprieve for OTAs, and a reality check for anyone assuming AI commerce is inevitable.
Buying or booking directly inside ChatGPT has officially become vaporware — and investors in Expedia and Booking Holdings are breathing a sigh of relief.
OpenAI is shifting its shopping strategy to focus on discovery and research, leaving checkout to third-party app developers, The Information reported Thursday. "
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Scooped by
Roland Schegg
March 6, 10:17 AM
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The ability of artificial intelligence (AI) to transform the travel industry is not up for debate. The discussion has moved on to what will radically change, how quickly and industry and consumer readiness.
Agents acting autonomously to book travel may be some time away, according to travel executives.
During a panel at ITB Berlin with executives from Booking.com, Google, Sabre and Skyscanner, James Byers, group product manager of Google, stressed how different retail and travel are.
“The world of retail and the world of travel have very different dynamics in how users go through the journey, how they consider these big purchases, in how they transact and who they transact with.”
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Scooped by
Roland Schegg
March 5, 10:46 AM
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"Airbnb is moving beyond its core short-term rental business and expanding toward a platform that covers the entire travel journey. Speaking at ITB Berlin, company executives outlined a strategy that includes vacation rentals, boutique hotels, experiences, and potentially airport transportation services within the same ecosystem. The move revives Airbnb’s pre-pandemic ambition to become a comprehensive travel platform rather than just a marketplace for homes. For hoteliers, this signals that Airbnb increasingly sees hotels as part of its growth strategy — not just as competitors.
Key takeaways
Airbnb’s strategy is expanding beyond rentals: The company is positioning itself as a platform where travelers can plan and book their entire trip, including accommodation, experiences, and transportation.
Airport transportation may be added soon: Airbnb is already testing airport pickups and private car transfers in several regions, suggesting ground transportation could soon become part of the booking journey.
Hotels are becoming part of the platform: Airbnb executives highlighted hotels — especially independent and boutique properties — as an important addition that could significantly expand the platform’s customer base."
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Scooped by
Roland Schegg
March 5, 1:12 AM
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“Votre prochain client est en train de planifier son voyage. Il n’a pas ouvert Google, il n’a pas tapé votre nom... il a demandé à son agent IA. Et cet agent a répondu, avec ou sans vous.”
C'est ce qu'on appelle l'IA agentique.
Ce scénario, il est déjà en train de se jouer et ça bouge très vite. Evaneos vient de s’installer dans ChatGPT. Booking, Expedia, Airbnb aussi se repositionnent à toute vitesse. On ne parle pas de communication mais bien de vrais choix stratégiques.
J’ai voulu faire le point : de quoi on parle vraiment, pourquoi maintenant, ce qu’il se passe déjà dans le tourisme…
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Scooped by
Roland Schegg
March 4, 1:59 PM
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"In the face of the LLM threat, Booking Holdings thinks it can repeatedly grow its top line 8% annually over the "medium term" and earnings per share 15% over the same timespan.
Booking Holdings Chief Financial Officer Ewout Steenbergen said Tuesday the traffic that his company receives from the large language models "is very small" and "it's not growing."
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Scooped by
Roland Schegg
March 3, 5:12 AM
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"The European Commission has introduced a voluntary Code of Conduct on Online Ratings and Reviews for Tourism Accommodation to address fake and misleading hotel reviews. The initiative aims to improve transparency, strengthen consumer trust and support fair competition within the European hospitality market. Major booking platforms and industry associations have joined the framework, which sets common principles for review verification and clearer rating methodologies. While not legally binding, the code aligns with broader EU digital regulation and signals continued scrutiny of online platform accountability."
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Scooped by
Roland Schegg
March 3, 3:32 AM
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2026 veröffentlicht der Verband Internet Reisevertrieb e.V. (VIR) bereits die 21. Ausgabe der „VIR Daten & Fakten zum Online-Reisemarkt“. Teil der VIR Daten & Fakten zum Online-Reisemarkt sind wie jedes Jahr die Studienergebnisse der FUR-Reiseanalyse mit Kennzahlen zur Tourismusnachfrage im deutschen Gesamtreisemarkt. Ein besonderer Schwerpunkt liegt auf dem wachsenden Einsatz von Künstlicher Intelligenz im Tourismus. Ergänzt werden diese durch aktuelle Marktforschungsdaten von Travel Data + Analytics (TDA) zur Entwicklung des Veranstaltermarktes, zu Buchungsverhalten, Saisontrends und Umsatzentwicklungen.
Die Auswertungen zeigen ein klares Bild: Der deutsche Reisemarkt hat sich 2025 weiter strukturell verändert. Bei 77 % aller Reisen wird inzwischen mindestens eine Reiseleistung online gebucht – 2024 lag dieser Anteil noch bei 74 %. Gleichzeitig hat bereits jede sechste Person in Deutschland (17 %) Künstliche Intelligenz für die Reiseplanung genutzt. Trotz wirtschaftlicher Unsicherheiten bleibt Reisen für die Menschen in Deutschland ein fester Bestandteil ihres Lebens. Der deutsche Reisemarkt entwickelt sich damit nicht spektakulär, aber strukturell tiefgreifend: preisbewusster, digitaler und zunehmend KI-gestützt – bei gleichzeitig robuster Nachfrage.
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Scooped by
Roland Schegg
March 3, 3:28 AM
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In his recent Skift article, Rafat Ali uses the term “Claude Effect” to describe a new market pattern linked to Anthropic and its AI model Claude. The phrase does not refer to a specific travel product. Instead, it describes what happens when Anthropic announces a new AI capability: investors rapidly sell shares in the sector that could be affected, even if the tool is still early or unproven. Ali argues that travel — an industry built on managing complexity through intermediaries — could be next to experience this kind of market shock.
Key takeaways
The Claude effect is about anticipation, not replacement: Markets have reacted strongly to AI previews in legal, finance, and cybersecurity. The disruption is based on perceived future capability, not fully deployed products.
Travel’s business model is built on managing complexity: OTAs, GDSs, and TMCs earn margins by simplifying search, comparison, booking, policy enforcement, and pricing. If AI agents absorb that complexity, their role could be questioned.
Consumer booking is an obvious pressure point: An AI agent that can search, compare, and book trips through conversation — connected directly to airline and hotel systems — could challenge the traditional OTA interface model.
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Scooped by
Roland Schegg
March 2, 11:15 AM
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Avec Nano Banana 2, Google fusionne la puissance de Nano Banana Pro et la rapidité de Gemini Flash. Le modèle est notamment déployé gratuitement dans l’application Gemini
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Scooped by
Roland Schegg
March 2, 11:02 AM
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Die Zürcher Hotellerie verlangt strengere Brandschutzvorgaben für kommerzielle Airbnb-Anbieter. Hintergrund ist die unterschiedliche Regulierung: Während Hotels umfassende Sicherheitsauflagen erfüllen müssen, gelten für professionelle Kurzzeitvermietungen teilweise weniger strenge Regeln.
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Scooped by
Roland Schegg
March 2, 3:53 AM
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Across Europe, rising construction costs and mounting operational pressure are accelerating a wave of hotel-to-serviced-apartment conversions. Ageing, independently owned hotels are increasingly being repositioned into tech-enabled, service-light models that promise lower overheads and faster stabilisation. Investors are responding positively, attracted by stronger margins and predictable cash flows. For hoteliers, the trend signals both a competitive threat and a strategic opportunity to rethink operating models and asset positioning.
Key takeaways
Ageing inventory is under pressure: Many older, independent hotels face rising labour costs, deferred capex and succession challenges, making them vulnerable to repositioning or acquisition.
Service-light models reduce cost complexity: Tech-enabled serviced apartments eliminate traditional front desks, daily housekeeping and F&B operations, materially lowering fixed costs compared to classic hotel models.
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Scooped by
Roland Schegg
March 2, 3:12 AM
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Modern hotel technology platforms — call them hospitality operating systems, all-in-one suites, or simply the new PMS — have genuinely transformed what an independent hotel can do. Companies like Cloudbeds and Mews have made enterprise-grade distribution, revenue management, and guest experience tools accessible to properties that couldn't have dreamed of them a decade ago. The hospitality industry has spent the last five years celebrating this reinvention.
What it missed is that the corporate traveler was never part of the story.
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Scooped by
Roland Schegg
February 28, 3:36 AM
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"Die Hotellerie bewegt sich zwischen zwei Welten: Automatisierung und Gastfreundschaft. Dabei entscheidet sich ihre Zukunft nicht im Duell zwischen Mensch und Maschine, sondern dort, wo Intelligenz klug verteilt wird. Davon sind Robert Kneubühler, langjähriger Hotelier und Gründer von Nighty Nighty, sowie die Zukunftsforscherin Dr. Martina Kühne überzeugt. Sie zeigen auf, wie sich Technologie und Menschlichkeit sinnvoll ergänzen lassen.
Gäste buchen heute selbstverständlich per App und nutzen Self-Check-ins. Gleichzeitig wächst die Sehnsucht nach persönlicher Ansprache, nach jemandem, der zuhört und versteht, warum heute ein ruhigeres Zimmer wichtiger ist als gestern. Genau in diesem Spannungsfeld steht die Branche."
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Scooped by
Roland Schegg
March 6, 10:46 AM
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Künstliche Intelligenz ist längst kein Zukunftsthema mehr – sie greift tief in die Wertschöpfungskette der Reisebranche ein. Von der Frage, ob Online Travel Agencies durch agentische KI geschwächt oder gestärkt werden, über die neue Bedeutung authentischer Inhalte im digitalen Hotelmarketing bis hin zu veränderten Kompetenz-Anforderungen im Recruiting: Die Branche steht an mehreren Fronten gleichzeitig unter Transformationsdruck. Die folgenden drei Analysen beleuchten diese Entwicklungen aus unterschiedlichen Perspektiven – Kapitalmarkt, Marketingpraxis und Personalstrategie – und zeigen, dass KI nicht nur Prozesse automatisiert, sondern Machtverhältnisse verschiebt, Markenführung neu definiert und Arbeitsprofile grundlegend verändert.
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Scooped by
Roland Schegg
March 6, 2:30 AM
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"OpenAI built the checkout tech but couldn't get users to actually buy. That's a reprieve for OTAs, and a reality check for anyone assuming AI commerce is inevitable.
Buying or booking directly inside ChatGPT has officially become vaporware — and investors in Expedia and Booking Holdings are breathing a sigh of relief.
OpenAI is shifting its shopping strategy to focus on discovery and research, leaving checkout to third-party app developers, The Information reported Thursday. "
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Scooped by
Roland Schegg
March 5, 10:35 AM
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OpenAI has reduced the scope of its plans to enable direct product purchases inside ChatGPT. The company had explored allowing users to discover products and complete transactions entirely within the chatbot interface. Instead, the current direction focuses on using ChatGPT as a discovery and recommendation layer that sends users to external websites or apps to finalize purchases.
For travel and hospitality, this signals that AI assistants may increasingly influence where travelers look and compare options, even if bookings themselves still occur on hotel or platform websites.
Key takeaways
AI as a discovery channel: ChatGPT is likely to act primarily as a recommendation and discovery tool rather than a booking engine, helping travelers find hotels before sending them to external booking channels.
Transactions remain external: OpenAI’s shift means that bookings will still be completed on hotel websites, OTAs, or other travel platforms rather than directly inside the AI interface.
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Scooped by
Roland Schegg
March 4, 2:19 PM
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Travel companies across the industry are investing heavily in AI-powered travel assistants designed to plan, compare, and eventually book trips automatically. The technology promises to transform travel planning into a conversational experience where AI agents handle research, itinerary building, and booking decisions. However, consumer adoption of fully automated travel planning remains limited, and many travelers still prefer to remain directly involved in the booking process. As a result, much of the current investment reflects a strategic bet on how travel discovery and booking may evolve rather than a response to existing customer demand.
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Scooped by
Roland Schegg
March 4, 7:05 AM
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Payment systems have become an essential strategic priority for today’s hospitality and travel industry, shaping every stage of the customer journey and influencing all facets of a company’s financial operations.
However, modern payments in travel are often blocked by legacy booking systems and manual processes that weren’t designed for the real-time nature of today’s global travel ecosystem. Leading companies across hospitality and travel are replacing these fragmented payment processes with unified systems and seeking long-term partners that can support global scale.
This new report, based on a survey of 368 hospitality, travel, and leisure executives, reveals how modern payments in travel and related infrastructure directly impact profitability — driving conversion, guest satisfaction, operational agility, and long-term revenue growth.
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Scooped by
Roland Schegg
March 3, 3:35 AM
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Der deutsche Reisemarkt hat sich 2025 weiter strukturell verändert: bei 77 % aller Reisen wird inzwischen mindestens eine Reiseleistung online gebucht – 2024 lag dieser Anteil noch bei 74 %. Gleichzeitig hat bereits jede sechste Person in Deutschland (17 %) Künstliche Intelligenz für die Reiseplanung genutzt. Das zeigen die Auswertungen der diesjährigen Veröffentlichung der „VIR Daten & Fakten zum Online-Reisemarkt 2026“ des Verband Internet Reisevertrieb e. V. (VIR).
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Scooped by
Roland Schegg
March 3, 3:30 AM
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Phocuswright’s latest study, Budgets, Barriers and the Race to Agentic AI, finds that more than 60% of travel companies are already engaging with agentic AI, marking a decisive shift from experimentation to operational ambition. Presented ahead of discussions at ITB Berlin, the research suggests 2026 could be the year AI moves into the core of travel operations. Unlike earlier generative tools focused on content, agentic AI is designed to execute complex, real-world tasks across systems using real-time data. While enthusiasm and budgets are rising, many companies are still in early stages of scaling and organizational readiness.
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Scooped by
Roland Schegg
March 3, 1:34 AM
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"The moment an AI agent handles the complexity of travel, the intermediation layer will have to answer why it exists — or at least why it commands the margin it does.
Four weeks in February rattled financial markets — all because of the launch of … AI plugins. Roughly $1.5 trillion in market value evaporated.
Here’s the pattern: Anthropic, the AI company behind Claude, announces a new capability aimed at a specific sector. The tool itself is often modest — a plugin, a blog post, a research preview. Markets then reprice the entire sector before anyone has tested whether the product actually works."
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Scooped by
Roland Schegg
March 2, 11:06 AM
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L’Académie de la transformation numérique (ATN) de l’Université Laval vient de dévoiler son étude NETendances 2025 sur les réseaux sociaux et le divertissement en ligne au Québec. Pour les gestionnaires marketing qui cherchent à affiner leur stratégie numérique, les données sont éloquentes : l’attention des consommateurs québécois est plus que jamais captive et les fenêtres pour l’atteindre se précisent. Voici trois faits saillants qui ont retenu mon attention.
#1 PRÈS DE 4 HEURES / JOUR SUR LES RÉSEAUX SOCIAUX. ET ÇA AUGMENTE ENCORE!
C’est le chiffre qui devrait faire bondir tout gestionnaire marketing : les internautes québécois actifs sur les réseaux sociaux y consacrent désormais en moyenne 3 heures et 41 minutes par jour. En une seule année, ce temps a bondi de 51 minutes supplémentaires, une progression qui, loin de se concentrer uniquement chez les jeunes, s’observe dans tous les groupes d’âge.
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Scooped by
Roland Schegg
March 2, 6:17 AM
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Aujourd’hui, le voyageur tend de moins en moins à « Googler » son prochain itinéraire de voyage, optant plutôt pour les modèles populaires d’IA générative tels que ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude, Google (Gemini ou AI Mode), DeepSeek ou encore Mistral. Un rapport de Booking paru à l’été 2025 estimait d’ailleurs à 40% la proportion de voyageurs français avait déjà fait appel à un modèle d’IA dans leur planification de séjour, chiffre appelé à monter jusqu’à 79% dans un proche futur. Constat similaire au Québec où un récent rapport du Réseau de Veille en Tourisme estime à 85% la proportion de voyageurs qui en fera usage d’ici l’été 2026!
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Scooped by
Roland Schegg
March 2, 3:51 AM
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Online travel agencies significantly increased their marketing investments in 2025, with the largest players spending a combined $20 billion on sales and marketing. Booking Holdings and Expedia Group accounted for more than three quarters of the total, reflecting sustained competition for traveler attention. Despite ongoing discussions around loyalty, direct channels and AI-driven efficiencies, overall spend continues to rise year over year. While direct bookings are growing for several players, they are not yet reducing dependence on performance marketing and brand advertising.
Key takeaways
Scale of investment: The leading OTAs collectively spent $20 billion on sales and marketing in 2025, marking another year of growth and highlighting the intensity of competition in the sector.
Booking Holdings’ balanced strategy: Booking increased marketing spend to $8.2 billion, with direct business in the mid-60% range and Genius loyalty members accounting for a high-50% share of room nights, yet higher performance and social media investment offset direct gains.
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Scooped by
Roland Schegg
February 28, 2:27 PM
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"The competition between online travel agencies (OTAs) to attract consumers to their platforms remains intense.
The largest players—Airbnb, Booking Holdings, Expedia Group and Trip.com Group—invested a combined $20 billion in sales and marketing in 2025. Booking and Expedia alone accounted for more than three quarters of the spend.
The figure represented a further year-over-year climb: OTAs have steadily increased sales and marketing spend over the past few years to $16.8 billion in 2023 and $17.8 billion in 2024."
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