Hotel trade grp blasts Expedia-Orbitz plan
THE hotel industry is objecting the proposed combination of travel booking sites Expedia and Orbitz, saying that the deal would mean higher prices for holiday-makers and larger fees for hotel owners.
"WE believe this transaction and the resulting consolidation of the online travel marketplace will result in significant negative consequences, particularly for consumers, but also for the large number of our members who are small business owners and franchised properties," Katherine Lugar, American Hotel & Lodging Association chief executive, said in a statement.
The hotel trade group says the deal will "severely reduce consumer choice". It also notes that Expedia charges hotels, on average, 11 per cent higher commissions than Orbitz.
Many smaller, independent hotels rely on these sites to attract travellers who otherwise would not have heard of their properties.
If the merger goes through, Expedia and competitor The Priceline Group Inc will control 95 per cent of the online travel agency bookings in the US, according to the hotel trade group. Priceline owns sites such as Booking.com and Kayak.
Expedia agreed to buy Orbitz for $US1.3 billion ($A1.77 billion) in February and more than 99 per cent of Orbitz shareholders approved the sale in May. Expedia had hoped to complete the purchase in the second half of 2015, but the US Department of Justice is still reviewing the deal.
The two companies own several websites that allow travellers to book airline tickets, hotel rooms or car rentals. Chicago-based Orbitz Worldwide Inc owns HotelClub.com, Orbitz.com and CheapTickets.com. Expedia Inc, based in Bellevue, Washington, owns Expedia.com, Hotels.com, Check Tickets, Trivago and Hotwire.com.
Source: The Australian / AAP, 7th August 2015
Originally published as: Hotel trade grp blasts Expedia-Orbitz plan
