What does "overbooking" mean?

What does "overbooking" mean?

Jen Leo (Daily Deal Blogger, LA Times Travel Section) gives expert video advice on: What is the process for checking in at the airport?; What are rules for "carry-on" luggage?; What happens if the airline loses my luggage? and more...

Overbooking has been in the news a lot lately. All it means is that they've sold more tickets than there are seats for that flight, which is a scandal. Airlines often overbook because they like to fly full flights, so they will sell more tickets than there are seats because a few people just might not show up. This is overbooking. If your flight is overbooked, they might ask you to give up your seat, and if they don't ask you to give up your seat, they might do it for you. The incentive is they might offer you travel credit, a meal voucher or a free ticket in exchange for taking a different flight and relieving the overbooking.