A Caselet on Airbnb, a Vacation rental company

Airbnb, Inc. based in San Francisco, California, operates an online

marketplace focused on short-term homestays and experiences. The company acts as
a broker and charges a commission from each booking. The company was founded in
2008 by Brian Chesky, Nathan Blecharczyk, and Joe Gebbia.
Airbnb is a shortened version of its original name, AirBedandBreakfast.com. The
company has been the subject of criticism for lack of regulations and enabling
increases in home rents.
After moving to San Francisco in October 2007, roommates and former
schoolmates Brian Chesky and Joe Gebbia came up with the idea of putting an air
mattress in their living room and turning it into a bed and breakfast In February
2008, Nathan Blecharczyk, Chesky's former roommate, joined as the Chief
Technology Officer and the third co-founder of the new venture, which they named
AirBed & Breakfast. They put together a website that offered short-term living quarters
and breakfast for those who were unable to book a hotel in the saturated market. The
site Airbedandbreakfast.com officially launched on August 11, 2008. The founders had
their first customers in the summer of 2008, during the Industrial Design Conference
held by Industrial Designers Society of America, where travellers had a hard time
finding lodging in the city.
After the founders raised $30,000 by selling cereal named after the two candidates of
the 2008 United States presidential election, Barack Obama and John McCain, mostly
at the 2008 Democratic National Convention, computer programmer Paul
Graham invited the founders to the January 2009 winter training session of his startup
incubator, Y Combinator, which provided them with training and $20,000 in funding in
exchange for a 6% interest in the company. With the website already built, they used
the Y Combinator investment to fly to New York to meet users and promote the
site. They returned to San Francisco with a profitable business model to present to
West Coast investors. By March 2009, the site had 10,000 users and 2,500 listings.
As per the Jurisdiction/Regulation of short-term rentals can include requirements for
hosts to have business licenses, payment of hotel taxes and compliance with building,
city, and zoning standards. The hotel industry has lobbied for stricter regulations on
short-term home rental. In addition to government-imposed restrictions,
many homeowner associations also limit short term rentals.
Read all the Essential Information about Airbnb from various sources on cloud and
answer the following

1. Prepare a SWOT for this Caselet, with your personal opinion about this
company (10)