No one would dispute that OTA’s and Hotel Suppliers are irrevocably tied together, but over the years the love-hate relationship has gone through several evolutions, each of which has borne out a valuable lesson. Obviously the ultimate goal for a supplier would be to have every booking come through its .com. This hasn’t happened, and it most likely won’t ever happen. The primary reason? Today’s travel buyers like to shop and see what’s out there. With the economy as it is, more than ever, the ones that are making travel plans are taking every step necessary to shop for a rate that will allow them to stretch their dollar as far as they can. When there are fewer travelers, which is happening now, the tension escalates even more because the Online Travel Agency and the Hotel Supplier are fighting even harder for that dollar. Which goes along with the next point, travel is a large investment, and large investments necessitate research. According to YPartnerships, in 2000, 35 percent of travelers were already using the Internet for research, while today 66 percent do.

If you asked an OTA about what they do, they would tell you they’re an online travel ...