Airbnb Settles Lawsuit With Its Hometown, San Francisco
Source: New York Times
Airbnb Settles Lawsuit With Its Hometown, San Francisco
By KATIE BENNER MAY 1, 2017
SAN FRANCISCO Airbnb agreed on Monday to settle a lawsuit against the city of San Francisco, putting to rest litigation that could have hampered the companys efforts to expand and go public.
In the settlement, Airbnb essentially agreed to San Franciscos demand to be more transparent about its hosts and to help enforce existing registration laws. It followed the companys dropping of a lawsuit in December over a New York law that fines people who illegally list their homes on short-term rental platforms. Taken together, the actions mean Airbnb has cleared up outstanding litigation in two of its biggest markets in the United States.
The latest settlement removes a regulatory cloud over the company as it readies itself for a public offering, even though Airbnb, which is based in San Francisco and has a valuation of about $30 billion, still faces legal disputes in a handful of markets. The companys chief executive, Brian Chesky, said this year that the company could be ready to go public in a year.
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Under the settlement between the city and the companies, Airbnb and other services like HomeAway will collect data from people who rent their homes out for less than a month on their sites. San Francisco will use that information to vet and register hosts.
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Read more:
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/01/technology/airbnb-san-francisco-settle-registration-lawsuit.html?_r=0