Amazon plans to launch a hotel booking service early next year featuring independent hotels and resorts near major cities, according to a Skift report. Amazon Travel could launch as early as Jan. 1 with a selection of hotels within a few hours’ drive from New York, Los Angeles, and Amazon’s hometown of Seattle, the article states. Participating properties would pay a standard 15 percent commission to Amazon for prepaid bookings, and would receive their payments from Amazon for the stays in two installments, hoteliers told Skift. Hotels that partner with Amazon would be able to leverage the company’s large customer database.
