All for one, one for all? An institutionalist perspective on the platform-mediated tourist rental industry

Taking an institutionalist approach, this paper examines how the consolidation of the tourist rental industry, defined as the institutional organisation bringing together a wide ecosystem of actors, contributes to the evolution of tourist rentals as a legitimate market segment. I argue that the industry acts as a platform for the governance of the market through which market participants connect, develop shared corporate strategies and craft market narratives, with the aim of influencing politics and policymaking. However, behind the industry’s image of being a close-knit sector, my analysis reveals significant power asymmetries, as well as different visions and conceptions of the market. While confirming the influence of major digital platform companies, the paper reveals that professional and corporate property managers are strengthening their market position and political legitimacy to the extent that they now form the backbone of the market. This institutional configuration reflects the evolution of the tourist rental market and recent changes in housing markets, driven by platform technologies and broader processes of housing financialisation and assetisation. This has several implications for policymaking, particularly housing policy, which are discussed in more detail in the conclusion.