• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
TechTripAdvisor

Online Travel Sites Are Getting Squeezed by Airbnb, Hotel Chains

By
Reuters
Reuters
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Reuters
Reuters
Down Arrow Button Icon
November 7, 2017, 7:05 PM ET

Online travel booking sites Priceline and TripAdvisor took a beating from investors on Tuesday, highlighting how the companies’ once industry-disrupting model is under growing pressure from other competitors.

Shares of TripAdvisor fell 23% on Tuesday, while shares in Priceline declined 13.5%. Rival Expedia’s shares skidded another 2.74% and are down 19% since Oct. 26, the day before the company reported weaker-than-expected third quarter results.

Though the circumstances at the three companies vary, they all are encountering increased competition from sites such as Airbnb and others that offer alternatives to traditional hotels. Hotel chains also are putting up a tougher fight for the online sites’ business.

“We’re a big business now,” Priceline CEO Glenn Fogel said on the group’s third-quarter call on Monday. “And as one finds in large numbers, (growth) rates naturally slow down.”

TripAdvisor CFO Ernst J. Teunissen warned investors during its quarterly earnings call that its year-over-year revenue per shopper had fallen 11% in the third quarter.

Companies such as Hilton Worldwide have become more aggressive in drawing customers from the third-party sites, offering incentives including free wifi and discounted pricing to make it more attractive for consumers to book a room directly through their mobile apps or websites.

Hilton has for the third time this year raised its full-year profit forecast and said business travel to its properties had improved in the months following the U.S. presidential election in November 2016.

“The highest growth that we’re seeing on a year-to-date basis continues to be in our direct channels. And I think we’ll continue to see that if we do our job,” said Hilton CEO Christopher Nassetta on the group’s third-quarter earnings call late last month.

He added that there was still value in third-party agencies as long as they operated on “reasonable economic terms.”

Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter.

Hotels are driving harder bargains in negotiations on commissions paid to third-party sites, analysts said.

“The hotels have been fairly effective at recapturing some of the share that would have gone to an online travel agent,” Raymond James and Associates analyst Justin Patterson said in a telephone interview.

To attract customers, the online travel sites said they were spending more on advertising, including television commercials. Priceline told investors it increased its brand advertising spending by 55% in the third quarter to build brand awareness and drive traffic to its websites.

Privately held rental company Airbnb enjoyed another successful summer, Patterson said. It raised an additional $1 billion in its latest round of funding in March, putting the company’s value at $31 billion.

While traditional online travel agents have made efforts to attract vacation rental consumers – from Expedia’s acquisition of HomeAway to Priceline’s growing portfolio of owned properties – Airbnb still dominates the market.

About the Author
By Reuters
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Tech

Apple's Siri assistant on a MacBook Pro in San Francisco on Feb. 11, 2026. (Photo: Jason Henry/Bloomberg/Getty Images)
NewslettersFortune Tech
What to expect at Apple’s WWDC
By Andrew NuscaApril 20, 2026
8 minutes ago
Coco food delivery robots.
InnovationSoftware
Exclusive: Your delivery robot will now offer the blind real-time, on-the-ground eyes around sidewalk hazards
By Catherina GioinoApril 20, 2026
3 hours ago
Blue Origin launches New Glenn, suffers issue deploying craft
Innovationspace
Blue Origin launches New Glenn, suffers issue deploying craft
By Sana Pashankar, Edward Ludlow and BloombergApril 19, 2026
19 hours ago
elon musk
Future of WorkElon Musk
Elon Musk bans résumés and cover letters in hiring for his chip team. These are the 3 bullet points he’s looking for instead
By Jake AngeloApril 19, 2026
19 hours ago
Photo of Robert Solow
AIProductivity
Thousands of CEOs admit AI had no impact on employment or productivity—and it has economists resurrecting a paradox from 40 years ago
By Sasha RogelbergApril 19, 2026
20 hours ago
Humanoid robot runs faster than any person ever has in a half marathon during all-bot race in China
AIRobots
Humanoid robot runs faster than any person ever has in a half marathon during all-bot race in China
By The Associated PressApril 19, 2026
20 hours ago

Most Popular

Thousands of CEOs admit AI had no impact on employment or productivity—and it has economists resurrecting a paradox from 40 years ago
AI
Thousands of CEOs admit AI had no impact on employment or productivity—and it has economists resurrecting a paradox from 40 years ago
By Sasha RogelbergApril 19, 2026
20 hours ago
Markets shudder as Strait of Hormuz starts resembling a combat zone. 'We're prepared to subject you to disabling fire'
Energy
Markets shudder as Strait of Hormuz starts resembling a combat zone. 'We're prepared to subject you to disabling fire'
By Jason MaApril 19, 2026
11 hours ago
'We should absolutely be concerned about non-college-educated men today': higher rents, living at home, falling out of the labor market
Economy
'We should absolutely be concerned about non-college-educated men today': higher rents, living at home, falling out of the labor market
By Catherina GioinoApril 18, 2026
2 days ago
Elon Musk bans résumés and cover letters in hiring for his chip team. These are the 3 bullet points he’s looking for instead
Future of Work
Elon Musk bans résumés and cover letters in hiring for his chip team. These are the 3 bullet points he’s looking for instead
By Jake AngeloApril 19, 2026
19 hours ago
The explosion of U.S. debt is wiping out the 'safety premium' of Treasury bonds, and time is running out for an orderly fiscal solution, IMF warns
Economy
The explosion of U.S. debt is wiping out the 'safety premium' of Treasury bonds, and time is running out for an orderly fiscal solution, IMF warns
By Jason MaApril 19, 2026
15 hours ago
The record-setting U.S. drought is so bad that 97% of the Southeast and two-thirds of the West are parched
North America
The record-setting U.S. drought is so bad that 97% of the Southeast and two-thirds of the West are parched
By Seth Borenstein and The Associated PressApril 18, 2026
2 days ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.