Booking Holdings' merchant model now represents 67% of revenue and holds $8.2B in deferred hotelier funds, making payout timing a bigger financial issue than commission rates.
Remington Hospitality's centralized in-house social media team has generated $3M+ in attributable revenue and a 37:1 return on ad spend across its hotel portfolio since launch.
A two-day executive programme at Chicago Booth London on 3-4 September 2026, focused on building commercial social media strategies, frameworks, and assets for hospitality brands.
Kempinski launches E.R.A.s (Experience Real Access) at Hotel Vier Jahreszeiten Munich, offering guests exclusive city access via Local Insiders and a dedicated Resident Curator role.
Onyx CenterSource data shows commissionable agency room nights rose 11.8% year over year in H1, nearly double the 6% growth reported by both Booking Holdings and Expedia over the same period.
Hard Rock Cafe and Coca-Cola are co-hosting a global music competition across 34 countries and 64 cafes, with the grand prize including a Coke Studio recording session, $10,000, and a performance at Hard Rock Orlando.
Evan Crawford of Pyramid Global Hospitality argues that as AI commoditizes hotel search and proposals, clear brand identity and genuine relationships become the primary competitive differentiators for hotel sales teams.
Radisson Hotel Group launches Long Stays by Radisson Hotels, a B2B extended-stay proposition with tiered pricing, standardized booking conditions, and aligned commissions targeting relocation firms, TMCs, and corporate buyers.
Influence Society has built a digital platform for SNUUG, a Swiss low-impact hotel concept opening in 2026, featuring sustainably manufactured suites hosted by local landowners in natural settings.
A 2026 Amadeus report found 69% of travelers trust AI summaries enough to book without further research, making AI discoverability the top demand strategy cited by hotel GMs.
GCSTIMES promotes engraved wooden key cards as a branded touchpoint that communicates sustainability and emotional connection from the first moment of guest check-in.
A single-day audit of 824 AI hotel recommendations across six US luxury markets found just 23 properties captured half of all slots, and a demolished Miami hotel was still being recommended 108 days after implosion.
As AI assistants like ChatGPT and Google AI Mode begin executing hotel bookings, no settled commission structure exists, leaving hotels to navigate three competing models with vastly different cost implications.
HEDNA's 2026 Global Distribution Conference returns to Lisbon on Sept 15–17, focusing on AI-driven search disruption, direct booking strategy, content standards, and the evolving role of OTAs and B2B intermediaries.
As travel growth shifts to data-thin emerging markets, the author argues most hotel sales teams can only harvest existing demand, not create it, and outlines how to build teams that can.
GCSTIMES explores how hotel key cards, designed with local food-inspired graphics and FSC-certified materials, can serve as guest touchpoints that encourage neighbourhood exploration.
A report based on 900+ event professionals reveals what trust signals influence venue shortlisting decisions and how AI-driven discovery is reshaping the planner evaluation process.
Cloudbeds' new OTA Ads feature lets hoteliers launch and manage TravelAds Sponsored Listings directly within the Cloudbeds platform, consolidating paid OTA visibility alongside metasearch, retargeting, and reputation tools.
A sharp editorial argues that regulatory wins against OTAs and platforms have delivered no meaningful revenue shift for hotels, and that direct guest relationships remain the only distribution asset that compounds.
Radisson's nano-creator platform now spans 400+ hotels in 64 countries, claiming 22x higher conversion than macro-influencers and winning multiple industry awards since launch.