Co-existence: The OTA-Led Defence Against an AI Takeover – Analysis by SiteMinder
As AI begins to reshape distribution, could the rise of AI agents mark the beginning of the end for third-party bookings?
The travel industry is on the verge of a new era: with the emergence of powerful AI agents like OpenAI’s ‘Operator’ that can simplify hotel bookings for guests, the question is how online travel agencies (OTAs) and hotel distribution, as a whole, will adapt. In a recent blog post featuring insights from hotel industry experts, SiteMinder, the world's leading hotel distribution and revenue platform, proposes that in this evolution, a co-existence between AI agents and these established players in online bookings is the most likely path forward for distribution.
While artificial intelligence is emerging as a tool for creating personalized travel offers and even making bookings on its own, SiteMinder illustrates that OTAs will remain key players in the AI era. Instead of disappearing, OTAs are poised to evolve into highly specialized data centres, taking hyper-personalisation to a new level with the help of AI agents that can gather and deliver booking information to guests on their behalf.
Simone Puorto, founder of Travel Singularity, offers an example in the realm of hyper-personalized pricing: “With more information, you could create a price for [Guest A], then create a rate for [Guest B]. This will become more than revenue management. I think it will become traveler management – you will really optimize for that specific person rather than just try to create boxes [to sort them into]”
While hyper-personalization may splinter guest profiles – moving from broad demographic groupings to individual preferences – and complicate data compatibility in an industry already marked by a fragmented tech ecosystem, insights from SiteMinder’s blog suggest that the natural consolidation of AI tools could centralize these technologies towards a single form of AI. As Thibault Catala, founder of Catala Consulting, suggests: “The opportunity in the next few years will not be about fragmentation, but centralisation, of data. And AI will allow this because that would be the only [thing able] to handle that amount of data and to be able to identify those different systems, which humanly is currently not possible.”
Beyond personalization and data processing, the power of AI is expected to further drive innovation among OTAs and influence every facet of distribution and revenue management. Still, its adoption requires thoughtful consideration, particularly around how willing guests are to move away from older technology and platforms to embrace the new, and whether these new solutions truly address the most immediate needs of hotel revenue managers.
As Howard Phung, digital transformation consultant, observes: "The industry sentiment is cautiously optimistic – hotels are open to AI but want to ensure it is secure, scalable, and easy to integrate without disrupting operations."
For complete insights into the evolving relationship between AI, OTAs, and the future of hotel distribution, read the full analysis here: Co-existence: the OTA-led defence against an AI takeover.
