m-Travel.com and Travel Distribution News

Archive Category: M&A

Cendant to buy Orbitz for $1.25 billion

Business Travel News reports that Cendant Corp. and Orbitz today reached a definitive agreement for Cendant to buy all the shares of Orbitz for $27.50 per share in cash or $1.25 billion. The parties to the deal, which is subject to regulatory and other approvals, expect to complete it in November. The acquisition was "not completely surprising," said Ian Wheeler, vice president of marketing for global distribution system competitor Amadeus, "Cendant has gone through a process of vertical integration, and this is in keeping with that strategy. What is unclear is what this means to the marketplace. Will Orbitz somehow be integrated, or will it continue business as usual? If the Cendant-Orbitz deal goes through, you will see more of these types of deals."

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Travelocity acquires Resfeber Scandinavia agency

FORT WORTH, Texas -- Travelocity has taken another step in its European expansion plan. Travelocity Europe, a joint venture with Germany's Otto trade group, has signed an agreement to acquire the top Scandinavian Internet travel company, Resfeber Scandinavia. The deal makes Travelocity Europe the largest online travel company in Scandinavia -- matching its position in Germany and increasing its European presence.

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Vivendi, USA Networks deal stalls Expedia sale

NEW YORK -- While most of the focus was on film and television assets, the US$10.3 billion deal this week between media giants Vivendi Universal and USA Networks also impacts the online travel industry and holds interesting promises for mobile commerce.

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Air2Web raises $20 million in new financing

ATLANTA -- Air2Web, a wireless platform provider, closed a round of $20 million in Series C funding and expects to close an additional $5 million in the next few weeks, the company has announced. Air2Web's Mobile Internet Platform enables customers to extend enterprise applications to any digital wireless device including Short Message Service (SMS) and Web-enabled phones, personal digital devices (PDAs) and pagers. 

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$5 million invested in Cerylion for personal wireless

WOBURN, Mass. -- Cerylion, Inc. has secured $5 million in series B convertible preferred funding with an investment was led by Boston-based Chestnut Partners, Inc., a private merchant bank serving corporate clients throughout the United States with investment banking services. Cerylion will use the funding to continue development of its wireless offering and to expand the company's sales efforts.

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Webraska, AirFlash merger creates global LBS firm

Webraska, a French-based provider of wireless navigation services and technologies, and AirFlash, a US developer of location-based technologies and services for network operators and wireless service providers, today announced they are merging to create a global leader in LBS (Location-based Services) applications.

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