Airbnb could lose up to 70 percent of South Korean listings
Monday, 26 Oct, 2016
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While it goes on the offensive and threatens legal action in key US markets New York and San Francisco, Airbnb is taking a very different approach against home-sharing legislation in South Korea.
Airbnb could cull thousands of South Korean listings from its site if they have not registered with authorities by mid-November.
The ministry of culture, sports and tourism enacted rules that state a Korean who rents out accommodation to foreigners must be living in that same home.
This rule was brought in to encourage the immersion of Korean culture by living with locals.
An estimated 70% of all Korean hosts have not yet registered with authorities.
The home sharing platform confirmed it is complying with the rules and will remove hosts who do not register.
"We are trying our best to identify all the illegal listings. But identifying the hosts is quite difficult," an Airbnb spokesperson in Korea said.
It will start deleting hosts from the site who do not report to central and local governments that they are offering lodging to foreign visitors.
South Korea has been one of Airbnb’s fastest growing markets in Asia but it could take a massive hit due to this impending deadline for registration.
"I believe the Airbnb platform can play a role to contribute a lot of things to Korean society, but it takes time for the government to understand we are not threats to Korean society or the Korean tourism industry," said Airbnb South Korea chief Patrick Lee.
TravelMole Editorial Team
Editor for TravelMole North America and Asia pacific regions. Ray is a highly experienced (15+ years) skilled journalist and editor predominantly in travel, hospitality and lifestyle working with a huge number of major market-leading brands. He has also cover in-depth news, interviews and features in general business, finance, tech and geopolitical issues for a select few major news outlets and publishers.
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