[murtali]

I think their value over the long term is similar to tripadvisor/yelp - while anyone can come in a create a repository of home sharing they wouldn't have the reviews/reputation data as AirBnB has. Going into someone's home / letting someone in your home, just like hotel reviews or restaurant, reviews/ratings can matter in the decision making process.

[spaceflunky]

The difference being that tripadvisor and Yelp own the reviews. They own the underlying core value. The value of Airbnb is the real estate which they do not own or control. Sure reviews help, but that's like saying only Amazon can sell something because they have reviews. Not to discount your point entirely, I still think there's value to reviews that validate hosts, but it's not he core value.