Name: Airbnb asks people to donate money to landlords, backlash ensues
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Airbnb asks people to donate money to landlords, backlash ensues

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Airbnb's latest attempt to appease hosts and customers amid a tumultuous year was met with a searing backlash on social media.The online vacation rental marketplace, headquartered in San Francisco, initiated a feature this week offering customers the chance to donate money and "kindness cards" to hosts."Today we're introducing a new way to connect with your favorite hosts. Now you can create personalized kindness cards that make it easy to send a message of appreciation or encouragement, with the option to add a contribution. We hope these cards will make hosts smile, and bring a little joy your way," a message from the company to customers read."Airbnb has lost its f---ing head, why would I donate to my host? I can't even afford one house." Twitter user olenskae fumed.Airbnb has lost its fucking head. Why would I donate to my host? I can't even afford one house. — Rosaleen (@olenskae)San Francisco-based New York Times tech reporter , "Airbnb has created a mechanism in which you can....donate money to landlords....many of whom have overextended themselves by leveraging multiple properties which they rented out pre-covid, and are now going empty...it's like the mortgage-backed securities of the sharing economy?"With soaring joblessness and a struggle for many to make monthly rent payments amid the pandemic, the move to raise money for hosts who often own and profit from vacant investment properties was seen as tone deaf by many."They've created this because their hosts absolutely hate them right now, due to the fact that their homes are largely uninhabited and Airbnb won't (cant) pay the hosts for their empty houses. Crazy situation where basically the entire platform has turned on them," Isaac speculated on Twitter.Emails sent out by the company this week explaining the feature read in part:"Like all of us, hosts on Airbnb are impacted by COVID-19, and many of them are unable to welcome guests. Now more than ever, it's important to reach out and support one another—even in small ways."It’s your responsibility to determine whether your contribution is eligible for a tax deduction or credit," the posting on the Airbnb website concluded.Social media postings expressing displeasure at the move continued to pour out on Tuesday."I got this email too. Clicked to check it out - they have you select a card, write the message &amp; do contribution on 3 separate screens. So you could miss that donating is an option until after writing a message - at which point you're perfectly primed to feel guilted into it," Twitter user amygoodchild wrote.2020 was due to be a banner year for the Airbnb, with an expectation of one of the hottest stock-market debuts. The company was previously valued at more than $50 billion, but with global travel nearly at a standstill its valuation has since dropped to $18 billion as the company faces an existential crisis.In April, that the home-sharing giant is expected to lose $1 billion through the first half of the year.In response to the backlash a spokesperson from Airbnb told SFGATE, “during this challenging time we heard from many Airbnb guests who were interested in supporting and reconnecting with past hosts. In the spirit of rekindling connections, we developed a new feature that allows guests to send virtual cards with messages of support and encouragement to hosts who provided excellent hospitality. If they wish, guests have the option to add a voluntary financial contribution.”Andrew Chamings is an editor at SFGATE. Email: Andrew.Chamings@sfgate.com | Twitter: @AndrewChamings

Airbnb's latest attempt to appease hosts and customers amid a tumultuous year was met with a searing backlash on social media.The online vacation rental marketplace, headquartered in San Francisco, initiated a feature this week offering customers the chance to donate money and "kindness cards" to hosts."Today we're introducing a new way to connect with your favorite hosts. Now you can create personalized kindness cards that make it easy to send a message of appreciation or encouragement, with the option to add a contribution. We hope these cards will make hosts smile, and bring a little joy...

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Writer. editor at @sfgate. also @theatlantic, @mcsweeneys , @vice, @thebolditalic. dm or andrew.chamings@sfgate.com if you have a story in your brainbox

Andrew Chamings

AndrewChamings

News. Culture. Sports. Opinion. All the journalism that matters from San Francisco & the Bay Area. Newsletters: http://sfgate.com/newsletters IG: http://instagram.com/sfgate

Airbnb asks people to donate money to landlords, backlash ensues

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