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Mike Segar | Reuters
Brian Chesky, CEO and co-founder of Airbnb, speaks to the Economic Club of New York at a luncheon at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, U.S. March 13, 2017.
So much for holiday spirit. Airbnb and the hotel industry are lashing out at each other, just as the travel season kicks into gear.
On Monday, Airbnb’s head of public policy Josh Meltzer sent a letter to Marriott CEO Arne Sorenson, asking him to explain to Americans “your industry’s habit of taking billions of dollars from taxpayers to subsidize the construction and operation of your hotels.”
The letter, a copy of which CNBC obtained, follows a Fortune interview with Sorenson last week. In it, Sorenson was asked if he thinks Airbnb has become more willing to make concessions or cooperate with regulators.
“I don’t know that I see that they’re more willing to concede,” Sorenson answered. “They’re spending a lot of money on government affairs and they’re playing pretty aggressive. I’ve had letters from Airbnb directly, demanding my response about some charge, I don’t even know what it is, within hours. That’s pretty aggressive, and I’m not going to respond to that.”
It’s the latest phase in a tit-for-tat battle being waged in public and in the press between the Airbnb and hotels. We reached out to Marriott about Monday’s letter but didn’t immediately hear back.
