OpenTable Wants to Own Data-Based Dining

For years, OpenTable has faced a bevy of challengers rising up around the world. After its acquisition by Priceline Group (now Booking Holdings) in 2014, though, the online reservations giant is looking to differentiate itself among restaurateurs who are hungry for more advanced data and analytics. At Skift Restaurants Forum in New York, OpenTable CEO Christa Quarles said that consumer and diner trends have increased the need for cloud-based insights for restaurant operators. "On the diner side some of the interesting trends we've been pushing towards is the near-me-now phenomenon," said Christa Quarles, CEO of OpenTable. "One of the stats we've seen is that 25 percent of bookings on the app are happening within 90 minutes of seat time. The denser the geography, the fewer people are willing to travel. How do we get the right diner in the right restaurant at the right time?" OpenTable is tapping its user data to create lists for users based on the habits of tastemakers. The company is trying to become more of a recommendation engine than it has been in the past, with a particular focus on appealing to travelers. "Discovery and transactions are starting to collapse in on each other," said Quarles. "Discovery is moving into transactions and transactions into discovery. Being in a transactions business is difficult, we are trying to move into discovery layer. What we're trying to do is know that giving you a list of 7,000 rests is not useful." Quarles wouldn't comment on how OpenTable has fared as part of Booking Holdings. She did say that the current setup allows it to look more long-term, without having to be as beholden to shareholders looking for quarterly gains. "OpenTable is not a stand-alone public company, so we're not beholden to that drumbeat," said Quarles. "The reality is you can invest over a longer time period. The other most important thing is the travel aspect, the best users on OpenTable are travelers. If you've used OpenTable in two cities or more, you have the most frequency of any users." Read More Recaps and Interview Transcripts From Skift Restaurants Forum [Updated with full transcript] Full Transcript of Discussion With Christa Quarles Skift Table: Alright, grand finale time. Thank you so much for being here. Quarles: Thanks for having me. Skift Table: OpenTable has been around for twenty years which almost sounds crazy to say in the world of restaurant technology. Needless to say the company has seen a lot of change, thi