Airbnb-CarTrawler Partnership Details Revealed

Airbnb's car rental partnership with CarTrawler, launched a month ago, is generating about 500 bookings per day across five markets: the US, France, Italy, Spain, and Australia. CarTrawler controls the top-of-page display, monetizing through marked-up wholesale rates and split commissions, and tilts toward suppliers with volume incentives. However, data sharing raises concerns: CarTrawler receives extensive customer data even when users merely click a link. Expedia's pending acquisition of CarTrawler heightens conflict-of-interest stakes, though Expedia asserts strict data separation.