That's pretty much the precise reason that I don't tend to use these so-called "collaborative consumption" services more: it takes a lot of effort to ensure you get a quality experience. It's great that Exec is doing all that work up front so I won't have to.

It seems to me that a lot of startups go the two-sided marketplace route because they're unable (for fear of becoming a party to the transaction, as well as often lacking the resources) to take control and directly manage the supply side. Airbnb is a great example of this: while they provide a platform to connect hosts and guests, that's pretty much where it ends. They don't even require their hosts to keep their availability calendar accurate, which kind of defeats the point. At least when I go to hotels.com I know that I'll have a room waiting for me when I arrive.