Following the permanent banning of parties and events on all Airbnb listings in June, the home-sharing platform added new "anti-party tech" in the U.S. and Canada.
The newly launched tools aim to prevent users from booking properties just to hold parties. It is a screening tool that will "help identify potentially high-risk reservations" and "prevent them from making a booking," as per The Business Insider.
'Anti-Party' Tech Screens Guests' Records
Airbnb's "anti-party" tech is an algorithm that will help identify potential rule-breakers by looking closely at the signals.
The algorithm will examine the history of positive reviews, and how long the user has been on the platform. Likewise, it will look at the length of the trip, distance to the listing, and weekday vs. weekend booking, as per TechCrunch.
According to Airbnb, the tech is created in such a way that it would prevent bookings that may end up being unauthorized parties.
For instance, potential rule-breakers will not be able to book an entire property. Options for booking a single room on the listings will be given as an option to the guest.
The hosts will be physically present on the site, which will make it more difficult for guests to hold a party without permission.
The anti-party tech is an extension of the Airbnb's existing under-25 system. The said system prohibits people under 25 years old having less than three positive reviews "from booking whole properties."
According to the company, the anti-party tech has been tested in Australia since last year, and it has obtained positive results.
"A similar variation of this system has been piloted in Australia since October 2021, where it's been very effective," Airbnb wrote in a blog post.
Airbnb said that they have observed a 35% drop in incidents of unauthorized parties in the areas of Australia where the anti-party tech has been in effect.
Read Also: Airbnb's Careers Page Views Jumps to 800,000 After Its Live, Work Anywhere Policy Announcement
Why Airbnb Decided to Ban House Parties
Airbnb banned party houses in 2019, when several people were killed at different parties hosted at Airbnb properties. The company also launched a neighborhood helpline to report noisy and disruptive parties.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the company put an indefinite no-party policy in August 2020.
However, despite Airbnb's effort to lessen house parties, the smart home company Vivint survey published last month suggested that one in five renters contravened the no-party rule.
During the company's Q2 2022 earnings, Airbnb stated that it registered a record of 103 million nights booked in the quarter. According to the home-sharing platform, despite the economic downturn, it still expects to achieve record revenue figures.
Airbnb was able to attain the record despite the growing dismay from consumers over the past few years. There have been complaints over higher cleaning fees and other hidden charges.
But according to the company, they make sure there is transparency about fees when guests are booking a property.
Moreover, Airbnb said that they offer tips to property owners to make cleaning fees reasonable. However, the company doesn't employ any strict rules about it.
Related Article: Airbnb Books Record High Demand Despite Removal of China Listings Last July
