How the shifting tactics of online travel agencies are reshaping hotel visibility and demand in 2026
Nov 13, 2025
Key takeaways
- Expedia is repositioning itself as a “demand generator,” not just a distribution pipe — a shift aimed squarely at reassuring hotel partners.
- OTAs are no longer marching in lockstep. Strategy divides are widening, creating different implications for hotel margins and visibility.
- Technology, APIs, and partner tools are now the battleground where OTAs try to prove they add incremental value.
- Hotels face a distribution crossroad, as balancing OTA reliance and direct strategies becomes more complex.
- The OTA landscape is primed for consolidation as growth slows and costs rise.
The OTA playbook is breaking apart
For years, Expedia, Booking, and the broader OTA ecosystem moved with the same gravitational pull: scale, volume, and ever-expanding global reach. But in 2025, the strategies of the major players are suddenly diverging — and Expedia is using that shift to sharpen its pitch to hoteliers.
At its recent London partner event, Expedia drew a clear line in the sand: it wants to be viewed not as a reseller, but as a source of incremental demand. In other words: We don’t just sell rooms; we bring you guests you wouldn’t get otherwise.
For hotels exhausted by commission debates and rising acquisition costs, that’s a compelling framing — if the execution matches the promise.
Expedia’s new message: “We boost visibility — not just bookings”
The core of Expedia’s repositioning rests on technology. Improved APIs, cleaner integrations, richer demand signals, and better partner tools are central to the pitch.
For hoteliers, the message is straightforward: Work with Expedia and your property gets more exposure in markets you struggle to reach on your own.
Instead of focusing on loyalty or fintech expansion (à la Booking Holdings), Expedia is leaning into the identity of a distribution-visibility engine powered by data and tech infrastructure.
This is not a small semantic shift — it’s a strategic repositioning aimed at redefining the OTA/hotel relationship.
The wider OTA landscape is fracturing
What’s driving the divergence? A mix of slowing growth, higher acquisition costs, and the rise of AI-driven, zero-click search that threatens OTA visibility.
Some OTAs are doubling down on loyalty and membership funnels. Others are leaning heavily into fintech. A few are chasing niche travel verticals.
Expedia, meanwhile, is trying to become the most hotel-friendly OTA through transparency, visibility tools, and incremental demand claims.
Whether hotels believe this — or whether it’s enough to differentiate — will become clear over the next 12–18 months.
What this means for your distribution strategy
For hoteliers, the implications are immediate:
- Reconsider your OTA mix. The assumption that “all OTAs are the same” is now outdated.
- Visibility value is becoming the competitive lever. Expedia wants to be the OTA that expands reach rather than erodes margins.
- Direct-booking strategies need recalibrating. OTA divergence means your direct channel won’t compete on the same terms with every OTA.
- Commission negotiations may shift. If Expedia can prove true incremental demand, it gains leverage — but hotels should demand real data.
This is a moment where distribution strategy requires sharper thinking, not just inertia.
The big question: can Expedia deliver?
Every OTA can promise value. The harder part is delivering it consistently across markets, chain scales, and demand cycles.
Expedia’s repositioning is smart — it speaks directly to the frustrations hoteliers have voiced for years. But credibility will hinge on:
- real incremental guest data
- meaningful visibility tools
- fewer opaque levers in ranking algorithms
- stronger performance for independent hotels
- transparent reporting
If Expedia executes, it could regain influence in a landscape increasingly dominated by Booking. If not, hotels will view this as just another round of OTA rhetoric.
Why this matters for the industry
As OTAs begin to pursue different paths, hotels can no longer treat distribution as a fixed, predictable funnel. The next two years will reshape:
- how hotels allocate visibility budgets
- which OTA partnerships deliver the highest ROI
- how AI-driven guest acquisition affects cost of sale
- what “incremental” demand really means
- which OTAs remain relevant as search and loyalty evolve
Expedia is betting that transparency, technology, and visibility are the winning formula. Time — and data — will tell whether it’s enough.
by Markus Busch, Editor/Publisher Hospitality.today
