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Virgin Australia Cuts Webjet Commissions as It Relaunches Holiday Packages

The shift signals airlines are pulling holiday sales back to their own sites to keep more revenue.

Overview

  • Virgin Australia will revive its Virgin Australia Holidays brand on July 1 and reduce the commissions it pays Webjet, pushing more package bookings to its own site.
  • Webjet said the new terms would have cut about $3 million from underlying revenue if they had applied from the start of 2026.
  • For the year to March 31, Webjet reported underlying earnings of $28.1 million, down 20%, and a net profit of $3.5 million.
  • Webjet halted ASX trading after Virgin’s announcement before resuming normal trade, with shares at 49 cents when the halt began.
  • CEO Katrina Barry is resigning as Webjet contends with weaker leisure demand, AI tools that make self-booking easier, and airlines and larger rivals drawing customers away from OTAs, which could mean fewer airfare deals on aggregator sites.