HNA Ditching Hilton + Air Canada's Economy Push + The Loyalty Myth

The Travel Industry's Daily Agenda-Setting Newsletter

April 6, 2018 View in browser

Editor's Note The other shoe just dropped. After months of speculation, China's HNA Group disclosed that it intends to sell its 26 percent stake in Hilton Worldwide. We don't know who will pick up HNA's equity slice, but at least the outcome should remove some uncertainty about Hilton's ownership structure. Meanwhile, the CEO of Red Lion Hotels Corp. thinks that the hotel industry is slicing and dicing loyalty in the wrong way, and that only the aforementioned Hilton, as well as Marriott, really drive an immense amount of business through loyalty programs. The rest of the hospitality crowd, CEO Greg Mount argues, needs to get more creative about putting heads in beds. Watch out for contrarians like him; they often make great points. — Dennis Schaal, Executive Editor The Second Annual Skift Forum Europe Is Fast Approaching 33 seats remain, and it's official — The countdown to Skift Forum Europe is on. Our c-suite speakers are coming from around the world and from every sector of the industry, like Ryanair, Booking, Thomas Cook Group, AccorHotels, and way more. Secure your spot today. Register Now Top Stories What Now for Hilton After HNA Sells Stake? Now the question arises, who will buy the HNA stake and what does it all mean for Hilton? Red Lion CEO on the Myth of Loyalty Programs Driving Lots of Business RLHC CEO Greg Mount's comments about loyalty programs might surprise his hotel peers. But when you really think about it, he might be on to something. And instead of focusing so much on building up their loyalty numbers, perhaps there are other ways hotel companies should be focusing on reaching consumers. IfOnly Raises $20 Million for Activities Booking: Travel Startup Funding This Week MasterCard, Hyatt, and others must have done their homework before they invested in IfOnly. Still, the startup certainly expects outsiders to take too much on faith about its progress. Latest Skift Trends Report Sponsored by Riskified We're taking a closer look at the hidden costs of this travel industry blindspot, and why today's best-in-class travel brands are turning to machine learning to help them solve this complicated fraud challenge. Download Now Data Privacy Is a Bigger Issue Than Ever for Business Travelers With laws in flux and hackers prowling for access, companies are trying to help corporate travelers protect valuable business data, but the efforts are piecemeal and inconsistent. Attempts to require loaner devices or limit access to information risk making international travel less productive. Air Canada Launches New Economy Fares to Compete With Low-Cost Carriers A new series of fares just launched by Air Canada should make it easier for discerning travelers to pick the fare that suits them best – as long as they're willing to pay for it. IMEX Partnership With C2 Shows Impact of Experiential Networking Collaboration between IMEX Group and C2 International shows the value, and power, of creativity in the meetings and events space. The more lessons planners from around the world can learn from these educational sessions, the better. Popular Now Southwest Tries to Do More With Less Because of a Temporary Aircraft Shortage The conventional wisdom is that airline passengers will do anything to save a buck. That's often true, but not always. Southwest has recently added more flights that depart before 6 a.m. and arrive after 10 p.m., and its load factor has suffered. Why Qantas Flies a Nonstop Every Day Between New York and Los Angeles Tag flights — when an airline lands in one international city and then almost immediately takes off for another — are disappearing from aviation as more airlines launch ultra-long-haul nonstops that make the stop unnecessary. But Qantas will probably keep its Los Angeles-New York nonstop for awhile. Tenants of New Airbnb-Branded Complex in Florida Feel Blindsided It's one thing to know when you're signing a lease that your apartment building will serve as a de facto Airbnb hotel. It's another to be "blindsided" months later after you've already made it your home. For Gmail users: If you are using the tabbed inbox, Skift emails may be pushed to the 'Promotions' tab. To get updates from Skift direct to your primary inbox, drag and drop this email to that tab. You received this email because you are subscribed to Skift Daily Newsletter from Skift.

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