Europ@Web Makes $20 Million Strategic Investment in
Leisureplanet
Premier Global Internet Investor Acquires Approximately 27% of Leading International
Online Travel Services Company
PARIS & NEW YORK, December 6, 1999, Europ@Web, the Internet investment arm of the
Arnault Group, and Leisureplanet (www.leisureplanet.com) ("Leisureplanet"), a leading
international Internet-based travel services provider that is majority owned by Leisureplanet
Holdings, Ltd. (Nasdaq: LPHL) ("LPHL"), today announced that Europ@Web has made a
direct investment of $20 million to acquire a 27% equity stake in Leisureplanet.
Commenting on the agreement, Chahram Becharat, Managing Director Europe for
Europ@Web, said: "Travel is one of the largest industries in the world and one that is most suited
to Internet transactions. Travel was the third-largest commerce category in 1998 and is forecast
to be close to the number-one position this year, with more than $7 billion in transactions. We
are very happy to be investing in Leisureplanet, which we feel is one of the very few players
based in Europe capable of becoming a worldwide leader of online travel."
Clive Kabatznik and Pierre Kleinhans, CEOs of LPHL and Leisureplanet, respectively, added:
"We are proud to welcome Europ@Web, one of the most prestigious global Internet investors,
as a major shareholder of Leisureplanet. This investment provides us with a strategic shareholder
that can add tremendous value to Leisureplanet and moves us closer to our goal to establish
Leisureplanet as the leading web-based travel services provider. Moreover, we believe that
Europ@Web's selection of Leisureplanet as the vehicle through which to access the exciting
online travel services market validates the quality of the Leisureplanet vision, management team
and strategic business plan."
As part of the transaction, LPHL will have the right to invest an additional $10 million into
Leisureplanet, at the same valuation as the Europ@Web investment, on or before January 31,
2000.
Leisureplanet
Leisureplanet is a leading international leisure travel e-commerce company, providing travel
booking and customer services to on line consumers through its own web sites, partner sites and
international media companies including Yahoo!, Lycos and InfoSpace. The service features the
world's largest image-rich hotel database; flight, car and hotel reservation facilities; package
holidays and cruises; and comprehensive proprietary travel guides on more than 180 travel
destinations.
Leisureplanet has distributed services to international localized web sites supported by local
customer service agents throughout Europe and other international markets. Each local web site
provides a comprehensive selection of competitively priced travel products for local consumers,
presented in the local language.
Leisureplanet has contracts with more than 16,000 independent hotels that offer their services
through Leisureplanet. These hotels are not affiliated with hotel groups and offer their own
individual style and service. Customers can make informed decisions when booking on
Leisureplanet, as they are presented with five pictures of each hotel. The independent hotels are
well-suited to leisure travelers.
Travel services bookable on Leisureplanet sites include approximately 49,000 hotels of which
16,000 are independents, 44 car rental companies, 455 airlines and 8 cruise lines. Visual data on
Leisureplanet web sites include approximately 60,000 hotel photographs, 14 web cams, 180
destination slide shows and 35,000 visuals related to last minute offers (to be added soon).
Leisureplanet is majority-owned by Leisureplanet Holdings, Ltd. (Nasdaq: LPHL), a publicly
traded investment company whose holdings also include businesses in various industries,
including value-added convenience foods and leisure products.
Europ@Web
Europ@Web is the Internet investment arm of the family holding company of Bernard Arnault.
With 500 million euros at its disposal, Europ@Web's investment strategy is to take majority or
minority stakes in Internet-related companies with strong growth potential in either the United
States or Europe. Europ@Web has already invested in LibertySurf in Europe, and also in
Webvan, 1-800 Flowers, and PlanetRx in the US.
|
