Expedia buys Orbitz for $1.34 billion

By Barry Eitel

SAN FRANCISCO

Travel booking site Expedia agreed to buy competitor Orbitz for $1.34 billion in cash Thursday, just weeks after it acquired Travelocity for $280 million.

With its new purchases, Expedia is charging against Priceline to conquer the top spot in the online booking world.

The new agreement allows Expedia to take on properties like CheapTickets and ebookers.

"We are attracted to the Orbitz Worldwide business because of its strong brands and impressive team,” according to Expedia president and CEO Dara Khosrowshahi in a statement about the acquisition. “This acquisition will allow us to deliver best-in-class experiences to an even wider set of travelers all over the world.”

Expedia and Priceline have been locked in a battle to control online travel and much of the strategy involves gobbling up smaller competition. Expedia has spent more than $3.2 billion buying companies since 2013, while Priceline has doled out more than $4.4 billion on acquisitions.

As a result, Expedia is now an entire portfolio of different brands and Web properties, which grew larger Thursday.

"From the flagship Orbitz.com brand, to other well-known consumer brands such as CheapTickets, ebookers and HotelClub and the business-to-business brands Orbitz Partner Network and Orbitz for Business, the Orbitz Worldwide team has built a devoted customer base,” Khosrowshahi continued.

On Wall Street, shares in Expedia jumped more than 15 percent Thursday, while Orbitz stock saw a greater than 21 percent boost following the news of the buy-out.

Expedia’s bookings earned $50.4 billion last year, while Orbitz brought in $12.4 billion in bookings. Priceline has yet to release its gross 2014 figures but previously claimed it pulled in $39.6 billion as of September – Expedia claimed $39.1 billion for the same period.  

Expedia began life under Microsoft in 1996 but was spun off as an independent company in 2001. The company also controls Hotels.com and Hotwire, among others.