Marriott International has already reaped the rewards of its merger with Starwood, by negotiating a deal that will see a reduction of 10% in the fees it pays to online travel agencies (OTAs) over the next two years.
Marriott International president Middle East and Africa Alex Kyriakidis told Hotel News Middle East: “We sat down with the OTAs, who I stress are our partners, and said our increased scale means more business for you and more business for us, so we need to take another look at the terms.”
“We renegotiated with our online travel agents what we think are industry-leading terms for the OTA commissions and that is going to represent roughly a 10% reduction in OTA rates over the next two years. That’s direct bottom line contribution to our owners’ pockets.”
Marriott spent more than $12 billion to acquire Starwood Hotels & Resorts in a deal that was finalised last year.
The full interview with Alex Kyriakidis will appear in the April issue of Hotel News Middle East.
