It’s hard to see outside your world, just existing, head down, and working hard. Conferences allow you to review, connect, listen, and watch. The results of this year’s excellent VRWS gave rise to this narrative and, although tongue in cheek, to a degree, highlighted the fact that we are travelling into a new dimension of vacation rentals.
Like geological eras, events and evolution change the course of the world. This is no different in business, and the vacation rental market is not unique in this transition. Below, we take a slightly humorous new look at the changes and early stages of the third epoch, the Corpocene, which we consumers have enjoyed or suffered for many years—one which vacation rentals are now faced with and are often ill-prepared for!
Directocene (1950 -2006) – The good old days
The Directocene was an era of simplicity, where thousands of small, independent holiday home businesses roamed the open plains of self-catering, thriving on direct bookings. Technology at this time was sparse—if you were lucky, a wall-mounted calendar or a well-organized notebook might serve as your booking system. As the years passed, early technological tools, like basic spreadsheets for those brave enough to tackle them, began to creep in. The dawn of the Internet and Web 1 began to disrupt this quiet ecosystem while still in its infancy, introducing websites, email inquiries, and the first online listings. However, many businesses remained tethered to their analogue roots, content with their freedom from middlemen, and blissfully unaware of the digital tsunami about to hit.
OTAcene (2006-2024) – Troubled waters
Then, with the suddenness of a digital meteor strike, the OTAcene arrived. Dominated by the rise of Online Travel Agencies (OTAs), this period saw technology evolve at breakneck speed. Booking algorithms, dynamic pricing, and cloud-based property management systems became the norm. OTAs, now the apex predators of the ecosystem, funnelled vast sums into advanced technology to optimize user experience, data analytics, and search visibility. Thousands of smaller tech startups emerged to service the growing demand for automation and efficiency in short-term rentals. Yet, while many of these fledgling companies found early success, the lion’s share of investment eventually went to a select few. Independent businesses from the Directocene found themselves corralled into the OTA machine, where visibility came at the cost of high commissions. It was a time of rapid growth for those who could harness technology and extinction for those who couldn’t.
Corposcene (2024>) The New Epoch
Welcome to the Corposcene, where global corporate behemoths dominate the ecosystem, and the balance of power tilts heavily in favour of a few tech juggernauts. The digital tools once used to empower small businesses have now evolved into highly sophisticated platforms designed to maximize profits for the giants. Artificial intelligence, predictive analytics, and machine learning ensure these corporations stay miles ahead of the competition while smaller players struggle to keep up. Roll-ups and acquisitions have become the norm, with many smaller tech companies and rental businesses either absorbed into more conglomerates or squeezed out entirely. Restrictive practices, such as platform lock-ins and exclusivity agreements, further cement the dominance of the few. The global market is controlled by the marketing budgets of these firms, leaving little room for the independent operators who once thrived. In this new era, survival is about scale, investment, and technological prowess—and those without it risk fading into oblivion.
Images are AI-generated by Dalle-E.