Hotel Industry Plans To Lobby Against Online Travel Agencies
by Jessica Montevago /
The U.S. hotel industry plans lobby against the “monopolistic” practices of Expedia Inc. and Priceline Group Inc., according to board meeting documents seen by Bloomberg.
The American Hotel & Lodging Association, whose members include Marriott International and Hilton Worldwide, will try and convince consumers and the Trump administration the online travel companies use unfair practices in their search businesses.
The industry group proposed lobbying Federal Trade Commission officials, as well as launching a marketing campaign highlighting “the Expedia and Priceline duopoly.”
“The rollout will play off the Monopoly board game to better underscore that the individual companies are really owned only by two major players,” Bloomberg reported the documents said.
OTAs charge commissions to hotels, ranging from 10% to 20%.