Airbnb News and Short-Term Rentals

Airbnb continues to be a major force in the travel industry, redefining how people book and experience accommodations worldwide. At PhocusWire, we bring you the latest Airbnb news, along with broader coverage of the short-term rental sector, including platform innovation, market trends, and regulatory developments that shape this fast-moving space.

Updates on Airbnb, short-term rental trends, and regulatory shifts

Track how Airbnb is evolving its product offerings, enhancing guest and host tools, and adapting to consumer demand for more flexible, immersive travel. Our stories examine the intersection of tech innovation, policy, and platform strategy—providing insight into how short-term rentals continue to influence the broader hospitality landscape.

Airbnb adds local VC partners to open doors in China
News / Distribution
Airbnb adds local VC partners to open doors in China
By Martin Cowen | August 20, 2015
Airbnb has signed up China Broadband Capital and Sequoia China as strategic partners to help it capture the massive potential of the Chinese outbound market. In an official blog post, Airbnb's CEO Read More
10% of Yanks and Brits choose Airbnb- and Homestay-style lodging, lagging world
News / Distribution
10% of Yanks and Brits choose Airbnb- and Homestay-style lodging, lagging world
By Kevin May | August 7, 2015
It is not a revolution, as some commentators would have the industry believe. But 10% of travellers using a "shared accommodation"-type product is hugely significant. The number comes from a major Read More
Tujia, China's HomeAway and Airbnb hybrid, closes $300M round
News
Tujia, China's HomeAway and Airbnb hybrid, closes $300M round
By Sean O'Neil | August 3, 2015
Tujia, a vacation rental platform with a minority stake owned by HomeAway and with short-term listings that are like Airbnb's, has closed a $300 million round. The investment round valued the startup Read More
Malcolm Gladwell on what data fails to tell Facebook, Airbnb and Snapchat
News
Malcolm Gladwell on what data fails to tell Facebook, Airbnb and Snapchat
By PhocusWire | July 29, 2015
Futurist, journalist, prognosticator, and author Malcolm Gladwell recently told a data-driven marketing technologist crowd that data is not their salvation. Read More
Startup pitch: Everbooked brings Big Data to Airbnb rental management
News
Startup pitch: Everbooked brings Big Data to Airbnb rental management
By Sean O'Neil | July 28, 2015
Everbooked is a demand-based pricing service for owners of Airbnb short-term rentals. The Oakland, Calif.-based startup says it is one of the first companies to bring "big data" to the vacation ren Read More
Sharing economy - much to do, plenty to offer [INFOGRAPHIC]
News / Online
Sharing economy - much to do, plenty to offer [INFOGRAPHIC]
By Kevin May | July 21, 2015
Shock, horror! Almost six out of ten Millennial Americans are aware of the sharing economy but less than half of consumers as a whole have knowledge of such services. Nothing particularly surprisin Read More
Recording an Airbnb property before guest is accused of trashing it - there's an app for that
News
Recording an Airbnb property before guest is accused of trashing it - there's an app for that
By Kevin May | July 21, 2015
Modern-day services still come with age-old problems - so Record360 is trying to help users of services such as Airbnb who have disputes with owners. The idea behind the product is pretty simple: i Read More
How to list your Airbnb-style homestay on Booking.com
News / Distribution
How to list your Airbnb-style homestay on Booking.com
By Sean O'Neil | July 15, 2015
On Monday, Tnooz reported that Booking.com, the online travel agency giant owned by Priceline Group, has begun listing homestays. The company has since revealed to us more details about the program. Read More
Silently debuting homestays, Booking.com jabs Airbnb
News / Distribution
Silently debuting homestays, Booking.com jabs Airbnb
By Sean O'Neil | July 13, 2015
Booking.com, the online travel agency giant owned by Priceline Group, has begun listing homestays. These accommodations don't come from Booking's traditional vacation rental inventory. A majority o Read More
Let's hear it for the millennials
News / Technology
Let's hear it for the millennials
By Viewpoints | July 8, 2015
As a nation, the US is in the midst of a season of change. And it is the millennial generation that is behind the conversations taking place. NB: This is a guest article by Joah Spearman, CEO and c Read More
Airbnb quietly starts a pilot for listings exclusively for business travellers
News / Online
Airbnb quietly starts a pilot for listings exclusively for business travellers
By Kevin May | July 7, 2015
Airbnb has made no secret of its strategy to widen the pool of travellers connecting with its hosts to secure accommodation. The big slice of the accommodation pie that Airbnb wants to gobble up ne Read More
Travel firms battling on the front line of fraud
News / Technology
Travel firms battling on the front line of fraud
By Viewpoints | July 7, 2015
Modern travel is exceptional - aircraft with wifi, bullet trains that average 200+ mph, boutique hotels that cater to every whim of weary travelers. NB: This is a guest article by Jason Tan, CEO of Read More
Mobile ads, user generated data and instant booking are the trends to watch in travel
News / Technology
Mobile ads, user generated data and instant booking are the trends to watch in travel
By Viewpoints | June 22, 2015
Respected and unofficial tech industry bellwether Mary Meeker from KPCB recently released her 20th Internet Trends Report. Tnooz covered it here, but I haven't another take on some of its findings. Read More
Airbnb releases pricing algorithm to devs, jeopardizing startups
News / Distribution
Airbnb releases pricing algorithm to devs, jeopardizing startups
By Nick Vivion | June 5, 2015
Airbnb has made a move that could jeopardize the budding ecosystem of pricing startups promising to help renters achieve the greatest profits: The popular platform has made its internal pricing predic Read More
Could it really take 10 years for the UK's sharing economy to thrive?
News / Distribution
Could it really take 10 years for the UK's sharing economy to thrive?
By Nick Vivion | June 3, 2015
It could take a decade for the sharing economy to truly thrive in the UK, according to the country's industry trade body. The comments came from Debbie Wosskow, the head of the recently-created Sha Read More
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