News Roundup 17/04/26: Casavo Pivots (Again), 25-Year-Old Portal Shuts & Domain Frees Matterport

Ed, Harvey and Simon discuss the news from the world of real estate portals this week. Rightmove makes moves in commercial, a French aggregator loses its second court case, clickbait shows off Zillow's brand power and Immobiliare.it turns to Adevinta's Subito for a traffic boost.

Stuart Shapley and Fouad Bekkar join Harvey and Simon for a conversation about the health of portals around the world using Coraly's new Global Portal Portal Index, which ranks portals across several key metrics including discoverability, listing quality, market experience, and innovation.00:00 - Intros02:10 - Coraly’s AI capabilities for real estate portals05:44 - The GPPI's four core drivers: discoverability, listing quality, experience, innovation19:26 - Key insights from the 2025 GPPI report: discoverability challenges and trust issues24:29 - Recognizing market leaders regionally and globally33:48 - Leaderboards and regional winners45:17 - Future updates

Ed, Harvey and Simon discuss the most interesting points from this week's news coverage on OnlineMarketplaces.com, including...* Casavo has announced it's third pivot and a return to iBuying* Domain has made Matterport tours free on its standard package* View.com.au is to be shut down after 25 years in the game* Zillow says it was coming up with its pre-market strategy two years ago

Simon Leadbetter is a marketing Strategist who teaches estate agents in the UK how do a better job with their marketing. He's also the person behind the influential 'The Voice of The Agent' reports, which show a clear picture of how UK agents think about their marketing... and about portals.Ed spoke to Simon about...- The report's latest findings (29% of agents spend their marketing spend exclusively on portals!)- How estate agents perceive and utilise marketing channels- The future of AI in real estate marketing and the impact on portalsYou can find Simon's reports here: https://weareunchained.co.uk/tvota/Chapters00:00 Introduction to the Voice of the Agent Reports03:08 Understanding Agent Marketing Strategies06:00 The Role of Portals in Agent Marketing08:51 Effective Marketing Channels for Agents11:57 Challenges in Propensity Modeling14:59 The Marketing Savviness of Agencies18:00 The Future of Portals in Real Estate23:32 Debunking the Myth of AI Taking Over Portals25:25 The Filter Bubble in Real Estate27:47 The Role of Portals in Real Estate Marketing29:40 The Relationship Between Portals and Agents31:51 The Importance of Impartial Research34:06 Agent Sentiment Towards Rightmove41:04 The Debate on Vendor Paid Advertising

Harvey and Simon get together for the weekly news roundup, featuring Zillow, REA Group and Fotocasa. There's also some AI search, data talk, and a conversation about Buyer Agents.00:00 - Intros04:20 - Share prices09:14 - Zillow's strategy with listings bans and off-market products14:16 - New ChatGPT integration for Fotocasa27:22 - REA Group’s acquisition of Neighbourlytics and data integration potential33:04 - The future of human buyer agents and other AI42:25 - Outros

Martin Waeber, Head of Real Estate at SMG, joins Harvey and Simon, including an update on financials since it IPO'd last year, and the Group's thoughts on AI and Data being rolled into Product.00:00 Intros03:18 SMG basics09:08 Business Model15:18 Lead Attribution and AI Integration18:10 The Future of AI in Real Estate21:03 Data as a Competitive Advantage24:11 Sustainability and Data-Driven Solutions27:10 Product and Other Topics

Harvey, Edmund and Simon get together for a breakdown of the industry's latest news, from lawsuits in the UK to multi-market challenges for CoStar Group...00:00 Introduction and Overview of the Real Estate Market01:41 Rightmove's Legal Troubles in the UK14:33 Zillow vs. CoStar Copyright Infringement Lawsuit Update25:18 Hemnet rolls out 'Sell Now, Pay Later' offer Nationwide31:35 The Shift in Real Estate Marketing Strategies37:41 Should Rightmove and Hemnet go more Transactional?43:30 Domain Layoffs and CoStar's Multi-Market Challenge

Ed and Harvey discuss the latest news from the world of property marketplaces, including...- Zillow's move to get with the program and offer pre-market listings- Domain's price freeze and possible layoffs- SMG's first set of results as a public company - AI products are becoming table stakesChapters00:00 Introduction and Conference Highlights03:28 Zillow's Pre-Market Listings and Industry Reactions06:28 The Role of MLS and Brokerages in Real Estate09:16 Zillow's AI-Powered Search Launch12:09 Swiss Marketplace Group Financial Results15:19 Domain's Pricing Strategy and Market Position18:19 ChatGPT Integrations in Real Estate Portals21:25 The Future of AI in Real Estate24:30 Conclusion and Upcoming Events

Ed, Simon and Harvey discuss what's been said on stage at the PPW Bangkok Conference 2026 including 'wicked AI' and 'babies being thrown out with the bathwater'. Apologies for the lack of video. The edit on this one was a nightmare.

Ed is joined by Daft.ie's CCO, Adam Ferguson to talk about the challenges in the Irish housing market, the introduction of vendor paid advertising, the rollout and adoption challenges, the relationship with agents, subscription costs, competitor reaction, international adoption, AI search, bidding system, market conditions, and the impact on affordability and market dynamics.Chapters00:00 Introduction and Sponsorship06:11 Vendor Paid Advertising Model16:11 Relationship with Agents22:56 Competitor Reaction and International Adoption29:16 Market Conditions and Innovations37:15 Offers by Daft and Market Adoption