Airbnb is intensifying efforts to combat the growing issue of counterfeit listings, a significant concern for users of the platform.
The short- and long-term home rental company took down 59,000 fake listings and stopped an additional 157,000 fraudulent attempts to join the platform this year, according to the Associated Press.
Customers have been increasingly voicing complaints about fake listings, and the company said it also plans to implement thorough verification processes using AI for all listings in the U.S., U.K., Canada, France, and Australia later this year.
Although fake listings do lead to financial losses for the company, Airbnb's CEO, Brian Chesky, emphasized to the AP that their foremost concern is the potential damage to the company's reputation.
"If you can't trust when you book an Airbnb that it's real and you're going to like it, then you're going to stay in a hotel," said Chesky.
Customers have also complained about excessive cleaning fees when using Airbnb.
In response to these concerns, the company said that over 260,000 listings have adjusted or eliminated cleaning service fees since it started allowing consumers to sort listings based on prices.
"We got a lot of feedback that Airbnb is not as affordable as it used to be," CEO Brian Chesky told the AP, adding that they are actively developing measures, including "seasonal dynamic pricing," to assist hosts in adjusting prices more frequently.
Additional reporting by The Associated Press.
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