By admin1
The Nashville MLS had previously threatened to cut Zillow’s feed of listings in the region today. It said the parties were negotiating around how to compensate brokers for the listing data that powers Zillow.
The MLS powering the real estate industry in Nashville and beyond stopped short of cutting Zillow’s access to the broad list of homes for sale that powers the portal.
Realtracs had said last week that it planned to follow in the footsteps of MRED MLS in Chicago and sever Zillow’s access direct access to listings in the market starting June 1 due to what it said were violations of its listing display rules.
When MRED severed Zillow’s feed, the portal quickly lost over half of the listings in Chicagoland, a move that Zillow said would cause irreparable harm.
Realtracs was set to follow suit when it announced on Sunday that it was negotiating with Zillow, and it set a new deadline of June 8.
“Realtracs is continuing active negotiations with Zillow as the current license agreement approaches its June 8 expiration date and is committed to minimizing disruption for brokers and their clients throughout this process,” Realtracs said in a statement over the weekend.
The MLS said that it was focused on making sure brokers received compensation for the use of their listing content.
That hits at a central issue that some in the industry have with Zillow and other search portals that receive listings via the MLS and then monetize them using the massive audiences they attract from consumers looking at listings.
“Realtracs holds that brokers own their listing data, and the organization is negotiating on behalf of its members to see that the value of their work is recognized by platforms, including Zillow, that rely on listing information created by brokers and agents to operate their businesses,” the company said.
A judge overseeing a lawsuit Zillow filed against MRED and Compass issued a temporary restraining order that restored the data feed in Chicagoland while the parties continue their battle in court.
In a statement, Realtracs CEO Stuart White said the MLS was focused on serving its members.
“That means protecting seller choice, recognizing the value of broker-created listing content, and providing a platform that encourages cooperation while preserving flexibility and opportunity for everyone involved in a transaction,” White said in a statement.
In late April, Realtracs announced that it was expanding beyond its traditional regional reach and accepting subscribers anywhere in the nation. In that same announcement, Realtracs said that it had secured all of the listings from Compass International Holdings and United Real Estate.
MRED had announced the same expansion just a week earlier, and it, too, secured Compass’ listings.
As it did with MRED’s expansion, Compass offered to subsidize the membership cost for Compass agents who join Realtracs as full members.
If Zillow loses its direct feed in Nashville, brokers that want their listings on the platform can reach their own agreements with Zillow, as some did in Chicago.
