After months of criticism for discrimination on the travel booking sight Airbnb, the company is finally planning to make some changes, Reuters reports. These will include changes such as making users’ photos less prominent in the booking process, and having users sign a non-discrimination agreement.
Criticisms were amplified on Twitter with the hastag #AirbnbWhileBlack. Many black users were noticing that they would be told a listing was unavailable, but then see it being re-listed later for the same dates, according to the BBC.
Airbnb recently hired a consultant to study the issue, which proved to the company that there really is a need for change. Chief Executive Officer Brian Chesky wrote in an email to users, “Bias and discrimination have no place on Airbnb, and we have zero tolerance for them. Unfortunately, we have been slow to address these problems, and for this I am sorry.” While it’s important that the company is realizing there are problems, it is yet to be proven that they’ll do something to fix it.
The company says they plan to make the changes to their reservation system before the end of this year. For example, if a host tells a guest that their listing is unavailable, they can’t then offer it to other users. Guests will also be able to book without approval from hosts in some instances. And—addressing a problem that’s plagued many tech companies—Airbnb hopes to increase diversity in its senior level positions.