Once upon a time, there were a variety of companies competing for the online travel agency (OTA) business. Microsoft created Expedia. Orbitz was started by a variety of major airlines. Travelocity was started by American Airlines. They all competed for our business.
But over the years, these OTAs have all gradually been merged into Expedia. Now, if you go to any of these websites, you’re using Expedia: Expedia, HomeAway, Hotels.com, Hotwire, Travelocity, Trivago, Orbitz, and others. The perception of variety and competition is illusionary.