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Google on video’s influence across the purchase journey

📹 Jul 25, 2025, BCG's research underscores YouTube's pivotal role in the purchase journey. Who? BCG and Ipsos. Where? Online, particularly YouTube. What? 43% of shoppers were interested in buying, 45% chose brands, and 34% made purchases influenced by video. How? YouTube is 1.7x more likely to influence brand consideration and 1.6x to drive purchases than social platforms. Why? Attention, relevance, and trust are key, with YouTube creators being 98% more trusted.
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Google search grows stronger in the AI age

📈 Jul 25, 2025: Google’s AI Overview, powered by Gemini, attracts over 2 billion monthly users, up from 1.5 billion last quarter. Search impressions increased by 49% year-over-year, while Q2 search revenue reached $54.2 billion, a 12% rise. Despite higher engagement, click-through rates drop, affecting ad performance. Google allocates $85 billion for 2025 capital spending to enhance AI integration. Startups like Perplexity and OpenAI pose competitive threats, while antitrust concerns persist.
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Google’s AI overviews reshape travel search

✈️ Jul 25, 2025, Google reveals at Phocuswright Europe that AI Overviews increase global search queries by 10%. These features simplify trip planning by integrating flights, hotels, and activities into single searches, enhancing user engagement. Google tests ad placements in AI Overviews, offering travel marketers new visibility. The advancements drive towards hyper-personalized marketing. Watch more: [PhocusWire](https://www.phocuswire.com/phocuswright-europe-2025-google-search-ai-travel).
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EV chargers emerge as top booking driver for Hilton

🚗 Jul 25, 2025. Hilton's top-converting amenity is electric vehicle (EV) charging stations, surpassing pools and free breakfast. Hilton plans to install up to 20,000 chargers across North America, forming the largest hotel overnight charging network. Marriott has over 7,000 chargers globally. Approximately 25% of U.S. hotels offer EV charging, with growth noted in Europe. EV owners, often earning above $100,000, are a valuable market. Airbnb listings with EV chargers outperform those without.
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Open Hotels blends AI and surveillance to rethink budget hospitality

💻 Jul 25, 2025, Open Hotels, a brand by Olive Group, revolutionizes budget stays by utilizing AI systems and virtual receptionists, reducing staff-to-room ratios by 57%. This digital approach, while enhancing efficiency, raises privacy concerns due to extensive surveillance of staff and guests. Their two-tier model allows hotel owners to integrate Open’s technology or outsource operations to an AI command center. As AI redefines service expectations, authentic human interaction may become a luxury.
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Marriott completes $355 million acquisition of CitizenM

🏨 Jul 24, 2025: Marriott International finalized its $355 million acquisition of CitizenM, adding 37 hotels and over 8,700 rooms. With this move, Marriott enhances its lifestyle portfolio amidst potential brand overlap concerns. Integration challenges loom, but Marriott plans to assimilate CitizenM into its systems by year-end. CitizenM's subscription program remains active pending future updates. This acquisition aligns with Marriott’s strategy to grow its select-service lifestyle brands, despite experts' warnings about maintaining brand uniqueness.
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Tesla opens 24-hour diner in Hollywood

🚗 Jul 24, 2025, Hollywood: Tesla unveils its two-story, 24-hour “Tesla Diner,” merging supercharging with dining. It houses 80 V4 Supercharger stalls and solar canopies, marking Tesla's largest urban hub. The retro-futuristic spot provides 250 seats, 66-foot LED screens, and in-car dining. Guests order via Tesla's interface, with food prep starting 15–20 minutes in advance. Tesla's Optimus robot debuted by serving popcorn, and Tesla merchandise is for sale. Elon Musk plans global expansion.
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Amex GBT expands emissions reporting for hotels

📈 American Express Global Business Travel will partner with Chooose to expand hotel emissions reporting, providing corporate clients with detailed carbon footprint data post-stay starting Q3 2025. Data, sourced from Greenview and anonymized hotel information from Cornell University and the Hotel Carbon Measurement Initiative, will be based on hotel location and service tier. This framework reflects industry consensus. However, property-level specifics won't be available. Emissions data, unavailable at booking, will be shared after the stay.
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Hilton’s Q2 RevPAR declines amid “noisy” economic conditions

📈 CEO Chris Nassetta, on July 24, 2025, highlighted Hilton's slight Q2 RevPAR decline: global down 0.5%, U.S. down 1.5%, partly due to new tariffs. Despite this, he foresees growth in corporate investment and AI-driven infrastructure. Hilton opened 221 hotels, with a 510,000-room pipeline. Notable expansions include Waldorf Astoria New York and Curio Collection in the Dominican Republic. China faces challenges, yet Hilton plans increased construction there. Full-year RevPAR projected to be flat to 2% up.
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AI search summaries slash traffic to news sites

📰 Jul 24, 2025, UK publishers report Google’s AI Overviews reduce news site clickthroughs by up to 80%, threatening independent journalism. Authoritas found sites ranked first could lose 79% of traffic. MailOnline experiences over 50% declines. UK’s Competition and Markets Authority receives a complaint against Google for unfair content use. Google disputes these findings, claiming unchanged web traffic. Critics say AI Overviews retain users in Google’s ecosystem, endangering quality journalism. [Read more](https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/jul/24/ai-summaries-causing-devastating-drop-in-online-news-audiences-study-finds).
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