Changes Made to App, Website of Agoda After Watchdog Raises Concerns

Several design changes were made to travel platform Agoda's website and mobile application after the Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore (CCCS) raised concerns over some problematic features.

- Christie Chiu

The issues were related to Agoda's accommodation search and booking features, which CCCS was concerned would mislead customers.

1. "BEST MATCH" SEARCH RESULTS
CCCS found that Agoda's "Best Match" search results were presented in a way which suggested that the rankings were most compatible based solely on the search criteria, such as travel dates and guest ratings.

But Agoda's search results also factor in the money the platform would earn.

Agoda has since replaced the "Best Match" label with "Our Picks" to better reflect that the results are the platform's recommendations.

2. 'AGODA PREFERRED' BADGE
This badge appeared on selected properties accompanied by an explainer which said: "Agoda Preferred recommends trusted and verified properties that have a long-standing relationship with Agoda and meet certain criteria."

CCCS said it was concerned that this blurb did not adequately explain the criteria for properties to receive the badge, which include paying Agoda more.

Agoda has since revised the explainer to disclose more clearly that these properties pay additional commission to the platform, the watchdog added.

3. DEFAULT 'RANKING' OF SEARCH RESULTS