Why is hotel distribution so complex? Who are the key players in this field? What are the purposes of a PMS, a CRS, or a channel manager? In this DIGITRIPS Tech guide to B2B hotel distribution, discover the key concepts of B2B hotel distribution and the role of each technology and stakeholder in the booking process.

Table of content

• Hotel Content Providers
• Travel Agencies
• Distribution Solutions and Systems
• Key Concepts in Hotel Distribution

Hotel Content Providers

Suppliers are the entities that make hotel rooms, accommodations, and related services (such as breakfast, cancellation policies, and negotiated rates) available to travel distributors. Depending on their business model, they either market their own properties or aggregate offerings from multiple hotels.

Independent Hotel

An independent hotel is an establishment that does not belong to a hotel chain. It directly manages its pricing policy, availability, and distribution, while relying on technology partners or distributors to sell its rooms on a larger scale.

Hotel chain

A hotel chain brings together several properties under a single brand or group. It generally centralizes part of its marketing strategy, reservation system, and distribution to ensure consistent management across its entire network.

Hotel wholesaler

The hotel wholesaler negotiates rates and room allocations with hotels in order to redistribute them to travel professionals. Its role is to make these offerings available to a broad network of distributors without requiring each distributor to negotiate directly with the hotels.

Bedbank or hotel bed bank

A bedbank is a platform specializing in B2B distribution of accommodations. Unlike a simple hotel directory, it aggregates a vast inventory from thousands of properties and makes it available to its partners via booking interfaces or APIs. Today, bedbanks play a central role in international hotel distribution.

Direct Contract

A direct contract refers to a situation in which a distributor works directly with a hotel or hotel chain, without going through an intermediary such as a bedbank. This relationship generally allows for customized commercial terms and access to specific content or rates.

Consolidator

The consolidator aggregates content from multiple hotel sources to offer a broader selection to its partners. It can combine direct contracts, bedbanks, hotel chains, and other suppliers into a single distribution platform.

Travel Agencies

Distributors are companies that market hotel offerings to other professionals or directly to travelers. They are the final link before a reservation is made.

OTA (Online Travel Agency)

An OTA is an online travel agency that allows travelers to search for, compare, and book accommodations online. It typically markets content from multiple providers while offering a unified booking experience.

Travel Agency

The travel agency assists its customers with booking travel services. Depending on its line of business, it may sell hotels alone, vacation packages, custom trips, or travel packages, drawing on various content providers.

Tour Operator

A tour operator creates its own travel packages by combining various services, such as a hotel, a flight, or a transfer. It then sells these products to travel agencies or directly to travelers.

TMC (Travel Management Company)

A TMC specializes in managing business travel. In addition to making reservations, it assists companies with matters such as travel policies, expense tracking, and traveler services.

Metasearch

A meta-search engine does not sell hotel rooms directly. It compares offers available from multiple providers to help travelers find the best price or the best option before redirecting them to the booking site.

GDS (Global Distribution System)

A GDS is a long-established distribution platform used by travel agencies to access various travel products, including flights, hotels, and rental cars. It allows agencies to centralize offers from numerous suppliers within a single booking environment.

Distribution Solutions and Systems

Behind every reservation are several systems that manage availability, update rates, and facilitate the flow of information among the various parties involved.

PMS (Property Management System)

A PMS is the software used by a hotel to manage its day-to-day operations. In particular, it centralizes reservations, check-ins, check-outs, room occupancy, and billing. It serves as the operational heart of the hotel.

CRS (Central Reservation System)

The CRS is a reservation system that centralizes a hotel’s or hotel chain’s availability and rates in order to distribute them across various sales channels. It serves as the link between the hotel’s internal systems and its distribution partners.

Channel Manager

The Channel Manager automatically distributes a hotel’s availability and rates to multiple distribution channels. When a room is booked or a rate changes, the information is synchronized in real time to prevent errors or overbooking.

API

An API allows two computer systems to automatically exchange data. In the hotel distribution sector, it is used in particular to transmit availability, rates, hotel descriptions, and reservations among the various market participants.

Hotel Connectivity

Hotel connectivity refers to the set of technical connections that enable hotels, distributors, and platforms to communicate with one another. The more efficient this connectivity is, the faster and more reliably data flows.

Key Concepts in B2B Hotel Distribution

These concepts come up regularly in discussions about B2B hotel distribution. They provide a better understanding of how platforms build and optimize their offerings.

Hotel Inventory

Hotel inventory refers to all the rooms, rates, availability, and services that a supplier makes available to distributors. This inventory changes constantly based on reservations, cancellations, or rate adjustments.

Hotel Management Certification

Aggregation involves bringing together multiple sources of hotel content on a single platform. The goal is to offer a wider selection while simplifying access to thousands of properties through a single login.

Hotel Map

Mapping makes it possible to identify when the same hotel is listed with multiple providers, even when the references or identifiers differ. This step is essential to ensure consistent presentation of the listings.

Duplicate Removal

Once the mapping is complete, deduplication involves grouping together the various listings for the same property to prevent it from appearing multiple times in search results. This provides travelers with a clearer experience and allows them to compare the different rates offered for the same hotel.

Yield Management

Yield management is a revenue optimization strategy that involves adjusting room rates based on demand, the time of year, occupancy rates, or local events. Its goal is to strike the best balance between occupancy rates and profitability by adjusting rates over time rather than applying a fixed price.

Better Understanding for Better Distribution

B2B hotel distribution relies on a complex ecosystem in which suppliers, distributors, and technology solutions must communicate seamlessly, as Frédéric Pilloud, Director of Digital at DIGITRIPS, explained. Understanding the role of a bedbank, a CRS, a channel manager, or an API provides a better grasp of the challenges related to content quality, connection performance, and the management of multiple sources.

Today, the challenge is no longer just about gaining access to more hotel inventory. It’s also about connecting the right partners,coordinating data flows, and making the content truly usable by travel industry players.

With this in mind, DIGITRIPS Tech develops connectivity and distribution solutions like Travel Plugz or Hotel Direct Access, designed to streamline interactions between suppliers, platforms, and travel distributors.