Good Sunday morning from Seattle . . . Our Online Travel Update for the week ending Friday, April 11, 2025, is below. This week’s Update features a heavy dose of AI related stories – including Microsoft’s recently announced partnership with Expedia and other OTAs – as well as a helpful overview of the UK’s Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act (DMCCA), which re-writes certain consumer laws and provides UK authorities new consumer protection enforcement powers, including with regard to junk fees. Enjoy.
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- UK’s DMCCA Introduces New Obligations and Enforcement Powers. Starting on April 6, businesses operating in the UK will face a number of new obligations and the likelihood of increased enforcement of those obligations. The DMCCA amends certain portions of the UK’s existing consumer protection legislation and grants the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) new powers to enforce those protections directly (without resorting to courts first). Key changes address areas critical to hotels and other travel industry businesses, including fake reviews and junk fees (businesses are now prohibited from presenting a “headline” price that does not include mandatory fees). A summary of these important consumer law changes is available from the CMA here.
- Analysts Cut Estimated 2025 Revenue Growth for OTAs in Half. Add tariffs to an already weakening economy and you get a reduced growth outlook for Booking.com, Airbnb, Expedia and TripAdvisor for 2025.
- Introducing “Copilot Actions,” Microsoft’s New Agentic AI. This latest addition to the agentic AI footrace comes from Microsoft and works alongside Microsoft’s newly announced Copilot Search (Microsoft’s AI enabled search engine similar to Google’s existing AI Overview). As part of its announcement, Microsoft identified Expedia, Booking.com and Kayak as its initial travel booking partners. Unlike other recently announced agentic AI tools (e.g., Open AI’s Operator), Microsoft’s new tool will be available to the general public without the need for subscriptions or additional fees.
Have a great week.