Opening and closing Internet booking channel for hotels: A first approximation

Abstract Internet Distribution Systems (IDS) are an essential tool for the tourism sector. This paper studies the presence or absence of hotels in IDS. Data was obtained from IDS when booking a hotel room in Barcelona, Spain. A generalised mixed model was used to analyse the data. The results indicate that only 50.9% of hotels sell via IDS, and are in the medium–high category. The hotels opened this commercial channel 74.8% of the days in the study period. Except in the top level category, prices do not vary over time, less than 6%, and prices do not seem to be influenced by IDS channel opening or closing. The most important factor in closing or opening an IDS channel is the time lag between the day the reservation is made and the target day. From a destination point of view, as the target day approaches, the probability of booking a double room by IDS is correlated with its price.