Online Travel Agencies 1H16: Just the Same as Usual

Summary

Online travel agencies (OTAs) charged forward in 1H16 following 2015’s year of consolidation. Rising online penetration and travel demand continued fueling Asia Pacific’s (APAC) rapid growth, and APAC OTAs chipped away at U.S. OTAs’ global market share of gross bookings. Hoteliers challenged OTAs with more aggressive direct booking tactics and APAC intermediaries continued unsustainable discounting schemes that grew market share but hurt profits. Collective gross bookings from eight publicly reported OTAs surged despite unpredictable external events such as European terrorist attacks, the Zika outbreak and “Brexit.”