Whether that argument holds in court or not, Expedia certainly has managed to lock up a surprisingly large share of the online travel agency game. Under the umbrella of Expedia Group sit some of the largest names in online travel, including Hotels.com, Vrbo, Travelocity, Hotwire, Orbitz, and Trivago. According to the lawsuit, 80% of all US-based bookings that happen via an online travel agency happen on an Expedia-owned platform.
Even if the hotels can’t give you a better price due to some BS agreement with a reseller, booking direct often results in you getting a mini bar voucher or something.