The following is excerpted from the question-and-answer section of the transcript.
(Questions from industry analysts are provided in full, but answers are omitted - download the transcript to see the full question-and-answer session)
Question: Doug Anmuth - JP Morgan - Analyst
: Great, thanks for taking the questions; one for Glenn, one for Ewout.
Glenn, just on AI, can you talk about what drives your confidence that travel vertical specific agents will prove to be valuable over
time and just how they'll compare to agents on broader based platforms? And then Ewout, you mentioned the shift in travel patterns
that you're seeing. Can you talk more about how booking is benefiting from the geographic diversification and whether you're
seeing any shift toward lower cost alternatives or shorter booking windows into the summer travel season? Thanks.
Question: Doug Anmuth - JP Morgan - Analyst
: Thank you, both. I Appreciate it.
Question: Mark Mahaney - Evercore ISI - Analyst
: Okay, I want to ask two questions. First, on attractions, I think across the industry there's probably going to be a little bit of a greater
focus on that this year. Glenn, is there anything in particular that's new about the strategy for you? I know you've got this high growth,
but it's on a modest space. Is there something that's caused the opportunity to become more attractive than at other points in the
past?
And then just on the agentic tools that you have on your own sites, the Priceline, Penny, etc. You want to just talk a little bit about
the product path? It seems like there's some really interesting functionality in there based on our testing, but it's still kind of beta-esque,
or I think it actually literally still is in beta. When do you think that'll come out and and the average person coming to to priceline
and the booking will actually be able to use the tool and it will be prominently displayed? Thank you.
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APRIL 29, 2025 / 8:30PM, BKNG.OQ - Q1 2025 Booking Holdings Inc Earnings Call
Question: Mark Mahaney - Evercore ISI - Analyst
: Thank you, Glenn.
Question: Eric Sheridan - Goldman Sachs - Analyst
: Thanks so much for taking the questions. Maybe too if I could, following up on the SKUs and the shifts you're seeing around the
edges in travel behavior, are you yourself changing any focus competitively about where you're aiming some of your incremental
growth investments to capitalize on shifts in the broader environment or are you seeing any competitive intensity changes broader
across the industry as result of some of those shifts?
Second question, I think I got this right, but on the prepared remarks, I think you made a comment that there's been some successful
experimentation in traditional marketing channels that had improved performance. And I just want to know if we can get a little
more granularity in what you meant by that in terms of what kind of experiments or what kind of rate of change you might be seeing
in terms of approved returns. Thanks so much.
Question: Eric Sheridan - Goldman Sachs - Analyst
: Great, thank you.
Question: Brian Nowak - Morgan Stanley - Analyst
: Great, thanks for taking my questions. I have two, maybe the first one is on the new annual guidance and sort of the widening, I hear
a lot of sort of things are stable. There's not a lot of changes going on in the business. Maybe to sort of walk us through the reasoning
for the widening of the range just to sort of, in case or just being more pragmatic, or is there anything you're seeing in the business
that is sort of informing your decision to widen the range versus what you thought 90 days ago?
And then the second one, just to go back to that last answer about the lower ROIs driving growth, is that -- is it a geographic
phenomenon or are there certain channels that are sort of like lower ROI or sort of -- Please help us understand a little more again
by what's going on with the lower ROI incremental acquisition that you have? Thanks.
Question: Brian Nowak - Morgan Stanley - Analyst
: Great, thank you very much.
Question: Lee Horowitz - Deutsche Bank - Analyst
: Alright, thanks, two quick ones if I could. Yeah, I think, Glenn, you talked about, if things were to perhaps go sideways, you guys have
often used those opportunities to sort of lean in and take share, and I think we have certainly seen that in the past. But it does seem
like there. Is perhaps some concerning about things flattening or going sideways in the US. Are you guys seeing that as a market
that that maybe you lean in even more and you planned previously, just given that this could be an opportunity to gain share in a
key strategic market?
And then maybe just one on direct mix. We've obviously seen that number continue just to creep up over time. I wonder how you
guys think about sort of what the high-end bar may look like over a longer period of time. You're building the connected chip, so
presumably still higher from here. But where do you potentially see high water marks for direct mix over time?
And how does generative AI perhaps impact that? Do Generative AI tools that you build perhaps help you build more direct mix
over time or vice versa or partners who are building Gen AI tools perhaps take increased pay mix over time, if their tools turn out to
be legitimate sources for travel demand?
Thank you, both.
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APRIL 29, 2025 / 8:30PM, BKNG.OQ - Q1 2025 Booking Holdings Inc Earnings Call
Question: Ken Gawrelski - Wells Fargo - Analyst
: Thank you for the question, two if I may please. First, I want to address again in past periods of some macro weakness, the OTAs in
general and booking in particular has had the opportunity to take share, and also has seen partners kind of lean into the OTA channel,
meaning the big chains, etc. So I'm curious as if you're seeing anything, especially in the US where you're seeing some incremental
weakness, if you're seeing that behavior already, and you expect that throughout the year?
And then the second one is really -- I'd love your thoughts on alternative accommodations versus hotels. If you think about the ADR
potential ADR performance throughout the year on a constant FX basis, would you expect to see maybe more volatility or more
variability in ADRs on alternative accommodations relative to hotels? Thank you very much.
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APRIL 29, 2025 / 8:30PM, BKNG.OQ - Q1 2025 Booking Holdings Inc Earnings Call
Question: Kevin Kopelman - TD Cowen - Analyst
: Thanks a lot. Can you talk about how broadly and in what ways your suppliers are engaging with the Genius program, particularly
with the tier 2 and tier 3 geniuses that are growing? And to what extent is Genius coming into play beyond traditional accommodations
and alternative connected trip verticals, and just as a follow up to the last question when you are seeing some early signs of pressure
like you know in the US, might you also see some pick up in supplier engagement with Genius. Thanks.
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