The Past, Present, and Future of Online Travel

Report Overview

The rise of OTAs during the post-GFC era marked a golden decade of market share gains for Booking and Expedia, fueled by the shift to online bookings and a consolidated distribution landscape. However, today the legacy OTAs face slowing growth, heightened competition, and shrinking profit margins. With increased competition from tech-savvy direct hotel brands and new players entering the market, the future of OTA market share hangs in the balance. Yet, Booking and Expedia are not backing down, doubling down on innovation and expansion efforts to maintain their foothold in the industry – albeit at the cost of lower profit margins. Ultimately, the future of the online travel market will likely be shaped by who can best balance innovation with efficiency whilst establishing enduring customer loyalty.

What You'll Learn From This Report

• The Rise of the OTAs: Understand how Booking and Expedia leveraged industry trends following the Great Financial Crisis to become the dominant players in online travel.

• Challenges to OTA dominance: Gain insights into the ongoing battle for market share and the factors that will shape the future of the online travel industry. Discover how a re-fragmented distribution landscape, resurgent direct hotels, and new entrants into the space such as banks and credit cards, are challenging the market shares of the legacy OTAs

• The Future of online travel: In the face of new competition, explore how the OTAs are adapting through innovation and new ventures, while facing the trade-off of lower profit margins.