If you’re on a Mac, Orbitz is willing to bet that you’ll spend more money when you travel.
The website has begun an interesting test that detects what kind of computer you’re using, and if it’s a Mac, the hotels that are suggested to you will be more expensive than the hotels that an identical user on a PC will see.
To be clear, all hotels will still be available for all users, and there is no difference in price for users who book the same hotel. The only difference is that Mac users will be shown the more expensive, four or five star hotels first.
The reason the company is testing this out is because it says on average, Mac users spend $20 – $30 more per night on their hotels compared to PC users. They are also 40% more likely to book a 4- or 5-star hotel.
That shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise. After all, Mac computers are significantly more expensive so one would expect their users opt for more expensive options in other purchase decisions.
Some users will undoubtedly find it unnerving that Orbitz knows what kind of computer they’re using, but the reality is that as long as you have cookies enabled, every single website has the ability to know what kind of device you have.
It’s really no different than websites that automatically redirect to a mobile version of the site when users visit from a smartphone or tablet.
Orbitz says that for now, this is just an experiment. It will be interesting to see if this becomes a new trend.
