Thoughts on the AirBnB Situation
I have been watching the whole AirBnB thing with interest. There have been some thoughts running through my mind, but I didn’t want to share them prematurely, so I have held off, until now. Here they are:
1. AirBnB is something people want to use. So, even if a large percentage of people think the idea itself is unsafe and would never open their home or stay at a stranger’s home, it doesn’t matter. Plenty of people want this and there is risk involved and the responsibility for that risk falls on the participants as much as AirBnB. Because of that, there is room for AirBnB (and like sites) in the market.
2. I think AirBnB will be alright long term with regard to this issue. The sooner they can get in front of this issue, the better for those chances, though. But, other issues may hurt them.
3. AirBnB is popular and the fact that we have only heard of a few of these instances speaks well of the service. Of course, when the host who had her house trashed suggests that AirBnB asked her to keep quiet, that doesn’t inspire confidence.