How GDPR Is Testing The Homesharing Market

The sharing economy is butting against regulatory challenges. As the number of sharing economy participants grows worldwide, governments and regulatory bodies are starting to ask more questions.

Regulators want to have a greater stake in the way sharing platforms operate. Many of these regulators also now expect sharing and payment services to comply with shifting data regulations, like GDPR.

In the April edition of the Payments And The Platform Economy Playbook, PYMNTS examines how regulatory compliance changes are impacting the growth of the sharing economy. The Playbook also looks at how payment services and other third-party platforms are working with shifting compliance demands to participate in the global sharing economy.

Around the Payments and the Platform Economy

As data security and transparency become greater concerns across a number of markets, some services are already working to confront the challenges.

In India, Google Pay is up against the New Delhi High Court over its operations in the region, facing a debate over how the payment service should be regulated. A reclassification could lead to significant changes in how the mobile payment service can operate in the country.

Meanwhile, homesharing platforms like Airbnb are battling regulators in states like New York, as hotels vie for a shift in occupancy laws. Putting this into practice would call into question whether or not Airbnb could operate in several state markets — a win for hotels.

In China, eCommerce platforms are also seeing shifts in regulation, with the country debating legislation that would reclassify both foreign and domestic players alike as they fight for market share.

For more on this and other developments, take a look at the Playbook’s News and Trends section.

Homesharing Platforms Look to Lease Features to Mitigate Data Concerns

As the homesharing market grows extensively around the world, consumers are expecting more when it comes to verification on the platform. Sellers want to know that buyers are who they say they are, while buyers want an assurance of legitimacy when it comes to sellers.

According to Hugo Monteiro, co-founder and technology advisor for homesharing platform Spotahome, home rental services need to offer more security features to assuage the growing concerns expressed by consumers. Along with other features, home rental platforms need to offer users more options when it comes to how they want to pay, and how they’d like to be paid to create more consumer trust, he said.

To learn more about how Spotahome is approaching data security and customer trust, read the Playbook’s feature story.

Why Hostelz.com Stopped Accepting Payments

As a 100-year-old staple of the hospitality industry, hostels remain one of the top lodging options where consumers are booking stays on the internet. Yet, as consumers start to expect faster service with more security, payments can be a major undertaking for booking sites. That’s why Hostelz.com no longer accepts them, according to Owner and Founder David Orr.

With the hostel industry still an attractive choice for millennial customers, Hostelz.com is taking an intermediary role, leaving payment and booking friction to partner platforms like Booking.com.

Read more about Hostelz.com and its move to a payment-free platform in the Playbook’s case study.

Payments and The Platform Economy

The monthly Payments And The Platform Economy Playbook series, a collaboration between PYMNTS and Yapstone, aims to help platform payment decision-makers identify and manage the risks and rewards inherent in shaping their approaches, enabling them to optimize their operations and navigate the real-time challenges they face.