Airbnb employed 98,400 people and
generated turnover of 3.4 billion euros or 0.22% of GDP in Italy
in 2015, the privately owned and operated web-based travel
lodging company said Wednesday.
The Italian market is the website's third-largest
worldwide, with 3.6 million people choosing to stay with 82,900
Airbnb hosts in Italy - 20,000 of them in Milan and Rome alone.
Italian hosts earned an average of 2,300 euros a year by
sharing their homes for about 24 nights, according to a survey
commissioned by Airbnb, Inc. and presented to Culture Minister
Dario Franceschini in Rome.
The survey showed most Airbnb hosts in Italy earn below the
average per capita income of 22,000 euros a year, and that 87%
have only one or two active listings and are long-time city
residents - meaning that the online platform is a significant
source of income for individuals as opposed to companies making
a profit.
Overall, Italy's Airbnb hosts generated revenue of 394
million euros last year, and their guests spent 2.13 million
euros at local businesses.
"The traditional hotel system and Airbnb can absolutely
coexist," Franceschibni said. "Airbnb helps multiply attractive
destinations and...allows tourists to experience a truly
'Italian-style' holiday, which is among the main reasons
foreigners seek us out".
Franceschini added the so-called tourist stay tax should be
included in the price of the room and no longer be charged
separately based on a hotel's number of stars - a system he
called "outdated".
"Making it a percentage of room price would make it fairer
and also guarantee more transparency and equality across
regions," the minister said.
The study out today was the first carried out in Italy
after similar surveys in London, Madrid, New York, and cities in
France and Japan.
Airbnb reportedly has over 1.5 million listings in 34,000
cities and 190 countries. It was founded in August 2008 and is
headquartered in San Francisco, CA.
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