Berks County Bar Association The Berks Barrister Winter 2019 - 7

w w w.BERKSBAR.org

T

he "sharing economy" is a concept of individuals
renting or borrowing, as opposed to purchasing
and owning. One of its key features is allowing the
monetization of assets, including houses and vehicles, not being
utilized to full potential. In a 2017 paper titled, "Putting the
Sharing Economy into Perspective," Koen Frenken, Professor
in Innovation Studies at Utrecht University, and Juliet Schor,
Professor of Sociology at Boston College, defined the sharing
economy as "consumers granting each other temporary access to
under-utilized physical assets (idle capacity), possibly for money."
A PricewaterhouseCoopers study published in 2015, forecasted
that by 2025, the sharing economy could reach $335 billion,
primarily generated by travel, car-sharing, finance, staffing, and
streaming.
The internet is truly without borders, and the sharing economy
has offered internet-based goods and services worldwide.
Online commerce, however, is in a "Wild West" phase of sorts
as technology has evolved more quickly than the law. This has
been felt acutely with "ride sharing" services such as Uber and
Lyft, as state taxi cab licensing authorities and the Pennsylvania
Public Utility Commission have demanded regulatory control in
high-profile cases. These services, however, have high visibility,
as they are advertised online and in a highly public manner
and on the road, competing with licensed taxi services. Less
visible, but equally prevalent, are services such as Airbnb, VRBO,
and HomeAway, which allow individuals to rent their homes,
apartments, or even single rooms online without the same visibility
as a classified advertisement in the newspaper. These online ads for
short-term rentals also are not limited by the geographical reach of
a newspaper or old-fashioned word of mouth advertising. These
advertisements literally have a worldwide audience.
Airbnb, for example, is a service offering an online platform
to facilitate parties who are not acquainted with each other to
conduct business. It provides members access to short-term rental
accommodations throughout the world. Similarly, property owners
have access to potential customers from a worldwide market
through Airbnb's website or mobile application. Its scope of
service, as described in its Terms of Service, makes it clear that the
company provides few guarantees or protections to visitors and
hosts:
Section 1.1: The Airbnb Platform is an online marketplace
that enables registered users ("Members") and certain third
parties who offer services (Members and third parties who
offer services are "Hosts" and the services they offer are "Host
Services") to publish such Host Services on the Airbnb

Platform ("Listings") and to communicate and transact directly
with Members that are seeking to book such Host Services
(Members using Host Services are "Guests"). Host Services
may include the offering of vacation or other properties for
use ("Accommodations"), single or multi-day activities in
various categories ("Experiences"), access to unique events and
locations ("Events"), and a variety of other travel and nontravel related services.
Section 1.3 While we may help facilitate the resolution of
disputes, Airbnb has no control over and does not guarantee
(i) the existence, quality, safety, suitability, or legality of any
Listings or Host Services, (ii) the truth or accuracy of any
Listing descriptions, Ratings, Reviews, or other Member
Content (as defined below), or (iii) the performance or
conduct of any Member or third party. Airbnb does
not endorse any Member, Listing or Host Services. Any
references to a Member being "verified" (or similar language)
only indicate that the Member has completed a relevant
verification or identification process and nothing else. Any
such description is not an endorsement, certification or
guarantee by Airbnb about any Member, including of the
Member's identity or background or whether the Member
is trustworthy, safe or suitable. You should always exercise
due diligence and care when deciding whether to stay in an
Accommodation, participate in an Experience or Event or use
other Host Services, accept a booking request from a Guest,
or communicate and interact with other Members, whether
online or in person. Verified Images (as defined below) are
intended only to indicate a
photographic representation of
a Listing at the time the
photograph was taken, and are
therefore not an endorsement by
Airbnb of any Host or Listing.
Continued on next page

Winter 2019 | 7
http://www.berksbar.org
Berks County Bar Association The Berks Barrister Winter 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Berks County Bar Association The Berks Barrister Winter 2019
