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| Bed & Breakfast News | Summer 2017
Our Chairman , David Weston , met officials at the CMA early last September and made all the above points forcefully , illustrated by many comments from B & B Association members , and screenshots from OTA searches and simultaneous direct B & B website screenshots – so show clearly where OTA ‘ discounts ’ and availability statements were demonstrably fictitious .
The following month ( 27 October ), the CMA announced they would be formally investigating false discount and availability statements , misleading and incomplete search rankings etc - ie some of the specific things we raised with them . We asked our members to submit their views and evidence to the CMA .
OTAs can of course be a great boon for B & Bs and guest houses by providing a strong source of bookings - BUT this advantage has come at a high price , as the two global giants who have 80 % of the OTA market between them have exploited their grossly disproportionate bargaining power with B & Bs and hotels to dictate terms with are sometimes ( to put it mildly ) less than fair .
They have gained their huge and growing market share by giving consumers the perception that it is cheaper to book through an OTA than direct with you - and have done this partly through the practices the CMA outlined in their October announcement about their probe into OTAs - for instance , in the CMA ’ s own words :
“ Discount claims : [ the CMA is investigating ] whether the discount claims made on sites offer a fair comparison for customers . For example , the claim could be based on a higher price that was only available for a brief period , or not relevant to the customer ’ s search criteria , for example comparing a higher weekend room rate with the weekday rate for which the customer has searched .”
“ Pressure selling : [ the CMA is investigating ] whether claims about how many people are looking at the same room , how many rooms may be left , or how long a price is available , create a false impression of room availability or rush customers into making a booking decision .”
The CMA are also investigating search rankings – i . e . “ how hotels are ranked after a customer has entered their search requirements , for example to what extent search results are influenced by other factors that may be less relevant to the customer ’ s requirements , such as the amount of commission a hotel pays the site ”
The CMA say that their next ‘ investigation update ’ will be in “ Spring 2018 ” – so it should be imminent . We will of course keep members informed .
Meanwhile , many thanks to all our members , who fund us and enable us to fight our corner with Governments and regulators . Our objectives are , as always , to inform , support and represent you .
As always , give us your views at comment @ bandbassociation . org