Lighthouse, the leading commercial platform for travel and hospitality, has announced the launch of Smart Distribution, an AI-powered feature designed to automate pricing and channel management for independent hotels. This innovation promises to streamline operations, boost direct bookings, and reduce reliance on high-commission online travel agencies (OTAs).
Solving a Long-Standing Challenge
Distribution management has long been a pain point for independent hoteliers, often requiring hours of manual updates with limited success. Many either struggle to keep up or abandon the process altogether, resulting in missed revenue opportunities and inflated commission costs.
Smart Distribution addresses this issue head-on by automating public rate updates across all channels and using AI to recommend strategic adjustments such as length-of-stay restrictions, channel closures, and rate offsets.
AI-Powered Decisions for Smarter Revenue
“Smart Distribution helps independent hotels take back control of their revenue,” said Vincent Goemaere, Senior Vice President of Independent Hotels at Lighthouse. “It replaces time-consuming manual updates and costly guesswork with AI-powered smart decisions, driving more direct bookings, reducing admin burden, improving revenue performance, and building a healthier, more profitable channel mix.”
Key Features of Smart Distribution
- Automated Pricing: Rates are updated instantly and continuously across all channels, ensuring accuracy and consistency.
- Optimised Bookings: AI analyses market conditions to recommend minimum stay requirements and channel closures that maximise profit per booking.
- Competitive Rate Shopping: Real-time comparisons against competitors allow for automatic rate adjustments to maintain market position.
- Commission Reduction: Channel-specific rate offsets encourage bookings through lower-cost platforms when conditions are favourable.
A Game-Changer for Independent Hotels
Smart Distribution is part of Lighthouse’s broader mission to empower over 85,000 hospitality properties across 185 countries with intelligent automation. By removing the complexity of pricing and distribution decisions, the platform enables hoteliers to focus on delivering exceptional guest experiences while improving profitability.
This latest feature marks a significant step forward in the digital transformation of independent hospitality, offering a smarter, more efficient way to manage online distribution, without the manual effort. With Smart Distribution, Lighthouse continues to redefine how independent hotels compete in an increasingly dynamic market.
Subscribe to our newsletter below