Guesthouse owners in China’s Yunnan province said that commissions and restrictions imposed by major online travel platforms are significantly cutting into their revenues.
Guesthouse operators in China's Yunnan have reported significant margin erosion linked to what they describe as abusive practices by online-platform giants, according to the Yunnan Province Tourism Guesthouse Industry Association, which is leading an industry-wide rights-protection initiative.
Last week, the association announced that it is gathering evidence related to alleged abusive conduct by online travel agency, or OTA, platforms.
The association told MLex that its evidence-collection efforts have thus far focused on two categories of alleged abuse raised by operators in Yunnan, one of China’s leading tourism provinces.
The first relates to commission burdens. Operators said explicit commission rates have risen from around 6 percent in earlier years to as high as 20 percent following platform consolidation.
They also pointed to implicit charges — including promotional fees and paid rankings — that can push overall platform-related outlays to about 40 percent of revenue.
After costs such as depreciation, room maintenance and staff wages, some operators said these charges can leave little profit margin, with a few noting that platform-related expenses can consume as much as 80 to 90 percent of their net earnings.
The second concerns coercive exclusivity arrangements, with some platforms said to require guesthouses to sign exclusive agreements.
Operators who place listings on social-media platforms such as Douyin or Xiaohongshu risk traffic downgrades or search suppression, they said. According to the association, such restrictions — if substantiated — could severely limit operators’ ability to choose and diversify their own distribution channels.
In addition, the association confirmed that operators outside Yunnan have also sought assistance over similar OTA rules, but said its registration status limits it to accepting evidence only from businesses within the province. It has advised out-of-province operators to contact their local industry groups.
In response to operators’ concerns about possible interference or retaliation by platforms, the association said it has put in place a confidentiality protocol and will redact sensitive information to protect the legal rights of those who provide evidence.
As reported, should the evidence support further action, the association may represent affected operators in submitting collective complaints to regulators, including the State Administration for Market Regulation and its Yunnan counterpart.
A commissioned law firm will review the collected materials and assess whether the alleged conduct is factually supported and whether it appears widespread among submitting operators.
Source: MLex
