Why the sharing economy could live up to the hype August 11, 2014 This was the summer the sharing economy truly hit London. First, we had black cabs bring Whitehall to a standstill with protests over the introduction of Uber, an app that allows you to call a cab wherever you are. Next, plans were announced to remove laws controlling short-term rentals, opening up the door for Airbnb [...]
Airbnb shows environmental benefits of sharing economy, study finds July 31, 2014 Guests using home and room rental app Airbnb in Europe avoided greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to 200,000 cars on the roads and were 10-15 per cent more likely to use public transport than if they stayed in a hotel, according to a survey conducted by Cleantech Group. The study claims that travelling on Airbnb, which [...]
Uber for Business is coming to London as sharing economy eyes corporate travel expansion July 29, 2014 Business travel looks like the next big market to be disrupted by the sharing economy as its poster children Uber and Airbnb unveiled plans to grow the number of business travellers using its services. Uber has launched Uber for Business, available initially in the US and Canada but with trials taking place in the UK [...]
Why London should be proud of Airbnb’s new “rude” logo July 17, 2014 When Airbnb launched its rebranded logo in San Francisco last night, it knew it would get a fair bit of attention but it couldn’t have anticipated that the new logo would be trending at number one on Twitter for eight hours. But is was. And why? Well, people think it’s a bit rude. And [...]
The sharing economy and VCs: A marriage made through money July 13, 2014 Hitchhiking once meant a compassionate driver picking up a rain-sodden stranger for nothing more than heartfelt gratitude. Today, its modern equivalent is “ridesharing”. Drivers now list journeys on their smartphones and sell seats in advance to offset the cost of petrol. Passengers book a seat online just like booking a train ticket, except that [...]
London to give Airbnb rentals the greenlight June 9, 2014 LONDON will open its doors to home and room rental apps such as Airbnb and OneFineStay as part of the government’s move to quash outdated laws that ban short-term rentals in the capital. Communities secretary Eric Pickles will today outline reforms to often-ignored legislation dating back to the 1970s that forces Londoners wishing to rent [...]
The stranglehold that’s closing in on Airbnb April 30, 2014 Airbnb is a company thriving on the sharing economy. The online platform enables people to rent out space in or their entire home to someone else for a short-term stay. Gluing traditional house swap sentiment with a growing appetite for sharing and localism, it gives people the opportunity to make money when it’s tight, and [...]
London’s top six Airbnb rentals April 22, 2014 New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman really doesn’t like Airbnb. He’s meeting the holiday rental company in court today, as Schneiderman wages war on what he describes as “illegal sublets” which appear on the site. Airbnb has already removed thousands of New York-based lets in a bid to appease Schneiderman, who has issued a [...]
Room-letting app Airbnb hits $10bn valuation March 20, 2014 AIRBNB, the online marketplace that allows homeowners to rent spare rooms from a mobile app, is in late-stage funding discussions that would give the company a valuation of $10bn (£6.05bn). The fundraising round, which is reported to include TPG Capital Management, would place Airbnb on a list of tech start-ups that have recently achieved a [...]
Airbnb plans funding round at $10bn valuation March 20, 2014 Airbnb is in advanced talks to raise funds that’d value it at more than $10bn, reports the Wall Street Journal. The round would see the online property-rental marketplace valued above some of the largest hotel operators with whom it competes. Private equity firm TPG is in the running to lead it, said two people who [...]