Looking at some of the recommendations, such as the return to the ten blue links format, the search giant Google has said that this could lead to fewer visitors to hotels. This comes at a time when the company is struggling to satisfy compliance with the new EU law Digital Markets Act (DMA), which bars the platform from prioritizing its own services. Some of the organizational objectives of the company concern the search result changes for multiple interested stakeholders, such as price comparison websites and hotels.
Google Warns Old Search Format Could Hurt Hotel Traffic
The company has continuously tried to balance out the pressure received from the hotels and airlines in addition to the smaller retailers with the ridiculous price comparison sites. Businesses also felt that the changes are Google’s ongoing compliance process with DMA law formulated to curb the exploitation of large technology markets. Google has said that it will try avoiding the new regulations by modifying how search results are shown.
It specifically revealed that hotels, in particular, are uneasy over how the new foundational changes to Google’s front-end formats may affect their ranking thereon. Returning to the basic 10 blue link view may push hotel listings lower on the page, meaning fewer clicks and, in turn, fewer reservations. The following is Google’s response to this problem, which shows that Google is keen to work under these policies, but the company also strives to offer the user a smooth experience during use of the application.
On their part, price comparison sites have been mobilizing to gain additional visibility in search results, claiming that it is skewed. These sites, however, maintain that Google’s current search system is still rigged in its favor and that it is more difficult for new entrants to stand a serious chance. The changes that Google is currently bringing are meant to fix these problems while also solving issues on Google’s side of things.
That is why, as Google goes on dealing with these issues, it is in a rather delicate position right now. Though it may succeed in adhering to the DMA, it has to make certain that its search functions are useful and efficient. The consequences of this process are that accommodation providers and comparison portals will be adversely affected, but the entire digital advertising market will be affected as well.
Google's Test Shows Old Search Format Unfavorable for Hotels
Google has recently conducted experiments on the 10 blue link format, which is the basic search layout, in Germany, Belgium, and Estonia. This was considered by the company as a backup strategy in case it failed to get an agreement with its competitors concerning DMA regulations. Nevertheless, the results of the test are unsatisfactory for both user satisfaction and the hotel industry.
When Google conducted the test, the old search format was detected to reduce the satisfaction level of users. Speaking at the Competition Legal conference, Oliver Bethell of Google said that such searches were slower and users had to make many searches to get the required information, such as hotels. For some queries, user search eventually terminated without getting the desired outcome, hence proving that their satisfaction level has reduced significantly.
The test was meant to show the problems that both users and hotels encounter when Google switches to the previous version of the search algorithm. This channel, which is in the form of ten blue links, might look more simplistic and easier to use compared to other options, but the channel indeed hides the full extent of the three major faults of using the search engine to find particular information such as hotel listings. When done consecutively, this might reduce the user engagements and in the long run prove devastating to companies that heavily rely on Google search as their source of traffic.
As for affected hotels, the data established that a complete return to the old format may lead to a decrease in visits. The results of the research indicate that the search format may not afford the exposure required by hotels given the inherent growth in the competitive online travel space. Hence, Google has been under pressure to meet the expectations of the business people and users while at the same time observing the set regulations.
Because of the results seen in the test conducted by Google, the company may be compelled to rethink the best way of dealing with the different stakeholders it has in the market. Despite the attempts made by the company in order to satisfy the requests of the DMA, the company must be careful in order not to harm the search form and its commercial partners. These test results may open the door to further modification of how Google arranges its search outcomes over the long term.
Google’s Old Search Format Hurts Hotel Traffic, Seeks EU Feedback
Google recently conducted a test on its old search layout, and the new format reduced visits to hotels and sit linter sites. Google reported that hotels received the largest percentage decline, down more than 10 percent, which has huge implications for hundreds of thousands of hotels in Europe. Intermediary site traffic, on the other hand, was almost unchanged during the test.
From the result of the test, the old search format that the company is planning to use might have a negative effect. Google observed the dip was worst for hotels that depend on search results page presence to transact with customers. This could fundamentally change the way that individual companies within the travel sector market themselves online.
Based on these actions, Google has stated that it will consult the European Commission once more in order to define a satisfactory solution for DMA compliance. The firm is under pressure not to prejudice itself in favor of either the hotel or the competitors and has been engaged in a search for ways of satisfying or balancing all these aspects or interest groups, including the hospitality industry, the Internet price-comparing websites, and the Internet society at large.
It was made after more than 20 price comparison websites complained to Google that the search giant was not responding to their feedback on the changes. These companies claim that Google’s proposal fails to address the DMA requirements and are now demanding that the European Union slap fines on the tech goliath.
Getting direct interference from the European Commission means that Google is going to get much more attention to its actions and their impact on companies all across Europe. The subsequent moves by the company are likely to address the possibility of providing a solution that can be acceptable to the regulating bodies and those organizations dependent on the company’s search engine as a means of relevance.
