Good Monday afternoon from Seattle . . . For those of you enjoying a long holiday weekend, Happy Labor Day. Our weekly Online Travel Update for the week ending Friday, August 29, 2025, is below. With the summer doldrums coming to an end, activity across the online industry has picked up starting with Booking.com’s newly
Latest from Duff on Hospitality Law - Page 4
This Week in Travel: Pricing Probes, Expedia’s Strong Quarter, Southwest’s Distribution Shift and New Loyalty Perks
Good Sunday morning from Seattle . . . Our Online Travel Update for the week ending Friday, August 8, 2025, is below. For several weeks now, we’ve all seen and read the many headlines regarding American Airlines planned use of AI for rate setting. This week’s Update features several stories on the controversy, including a
Q2 Results, AI Strategy and New Legal Trouble Keep Spotlight on Booking Holdings
Good Sunday evening from Seattle . . . Our Online Travel Update for the week ending Friday, August 1, 2025, is below. It was another slow week in the online travel world with Booking Holdings again capturing most of the industry’s headlines. Enjoy.
-
- Booking Holdings Reports Strong Second Quarter. This past week Booking Holdings issued
Slower Summer Week, Big Travel Tech Moves: OpenAI’s Booking Agent and DirectBooker’s AI Play
With summer in full swing, it is no surprise that this past week was another slow week in the online travel industry. Our recommendation? Enjoy this week’s Update with a drink in hand by your pool or other favorite body of water. Enjoy:
-
- OpenAI Launches Agent Mode. On Thursday this past week, OpenAI officially released
Google's DMA Tightrope: Navigating Search Result Battles Between Intermediaries and Direct Sellers in Online Travel
Google captured most of the online travel industry’s headlines this past week as it seeks to “balance” the competing interests of regulators, on the one hand, and intermediaries and direct sellers, on the other hand. As long as traditional search maintains its outsized influence on online travel, the outcome of these discussions will have a
Booking.com’s Ongoing Legal Battles, Alibaba’s Travel Restructuring & the Rise of AI in Hotel Visibility
Good Saturday evening from Seattle . . . Our Online Travel Update for the week ending Friday, June 27, 2025, is below. This week’s Update features news of yet another claim being brought against Booking.com over its commercial practices and updates on Alibaba’s planned restructuring of its travel platform, Fliggy. Going forward, expect to see
Google Hotels Faces New Challenges as Competitors Gain Ground
Good Sunday evening from Seattle . . . Our weekly Online Travel Update for the week ending Friday, June 20, 2023, is below. Given summer’s official arrival this past Friday, it should be no surprise that the past week was a relatively quiet week for online travel. Enjoy.
-
- Google Hotels Feeling the Pressure. One of
AI at the Crossroads, Booking.com in the Crosshairs: This Week’s Travel Industry Headlines
Good Sunday evening from Seattle . . . Our Online Travel Update for the week ending Friday, June 6, 2025, is below. Like last week’s Update, which featured a number of stories on Booking.com, this week’s Update also includes several Booking.com stories and updates to stories we featured last week. I hope you enjoy.
-
- UPDATE:
Class Actions, Competition Scrutiny and Lloyds’ Travel Play: A Full Plate for Online Travel
Good Sunday morning from Seattle . . . Our Online Travel Update for the week ending Friday, May 30, 2025, is below. Booking.com features prominently (again) in our Update this week as investigations into, and claims against, the major online travel agent increase (these things seem to come in waves). I hope you enjoy.
-
- European
Rewriting the Travel Rulebook: AI, Accor and a Swiss Surprise
Good Monday morning from Seattle . . . For those of you who have served in the armed forces, thank you for your service. Our Online Travel Update for the week ending Friday, May 23, 2025, is below. This week’s Update features stories for everyone – leisure, corporate / managed and group. I hope you