From Berlin to Barcelona; will Airbnb ruin our most loved cities? | theguardian.com
To use the industry jargon, it is the ultimate “disruptor”. Airbnb, the website that allows homeowners around the world to rent out their spare rooms, has had a seismic impact on the travel market. Hotel chains are reportedly feeling the squeeze as the US upstart – which has attracted $2bn in funding in less than a decade – eats into their business model by offering travellers the opportunity to “live like a local” and “belong anywhere” in one of the two million rooms and properties that are listed on its site. The savvy exhortations, which feature in slick adverts on bus stops and billboards across the world’s cities, have helped Airbnb expand at a seemingly relentless pace. Already operating in 191 countries and 34,000 cities, analysts at financial services company Cowen & Co predict that, by 2020, Airbnb hosts will be taking 500 million bookings a night, rising to a staggering one billion by 2025.
