Donny, not much has been mentioned about CNN's $20 million investment. Time to revisit the news.
Regards,
Tom
CNN News Group to Take $20 Million Equity Stake in
Leisureplanet as Part of Strategic Agreement
Leisureplanet to Become Exclusive Travel Services Provider for CNN Web Sites and to
Launch $30 Million Ad Campaign Across CNN Properties
December 20, 1999, the CNN News Group and Leisureplanet (www.leisureplanet.com), a
leading international Internet travel services provider that is majority-owned by Leisureplanet
Holdings, Ltd. (Nasdaq: LPHL), today announced an agreement forming a strategic alliance
under which the CNN News Group will take a $20 million equity stake in Leisureplanet. As part
of the agreement, Leisureplanet will become the exclusive travel services provider for almost all
CNN Web sites.
The three-year agreement also calls for Leisureplanet to enhance and promote its branded travel
services through a $30 million advertising campaign across CNN's online and on-air properties.
The campaign is expected to launch in early 2000 and will run for three years.
"Leisureplanet offers the international reach and depth of travel services that are ideal for the
CNN Web sites," said Bill Burke, president and CEO, news and information, Time Warner
Digital Media. "More and more travelers are using the Internet for all aspects of their travel
needs, and we want the CNN Web sites to be the most comprehensive, useful sites available.
Leisureplanet will significantly help us to achieve that goal."
Other terms of the agreement include:
CNN/Leisureplanet co-branded travel services and content will be integrated into several
CNN Web sites, including CNN.com, CNNfn.com, CNNSI.com, CNNenEspanol.com,
CNNemPortugues.com and CNNTraveller.com. Leisureplanet will provide air, car, hotel
and leisure travel packages, supported by services such as low-fare e-mail and travel
specials for the CNN sites;
Leisureplanet will provide CNN travel bookers with multilingual e-mail and telephone
customer care;
CNN will run an on-air promotional campaign highlighting Leisureplanet's availability on
the CNN Web sites on each of the following CNN News Group cable television
networks: CNN/U.S., CNN International, CNN Headline News, CNNfn, CNN/Sports
Illustrated and CNN Airport Network. CNN will also promote Leisureplanet's services
through the CNN Web sites;
Leisureplanet will be the exclusive travel booking sponsor of a newly created weekly
half-hour international travel show, CNN Hot Spots, which will air on CNN International.
CNN Hot Spots will debut in March 2000 and will be promoted across the CNN News
Group's networks.
Clive Kabatznik, CEO of Leisureplanet Holdings, said, "This strategic partnership with CNN is a
key step toward Leisureplanet's goal to establish itself as the leading international Web-based
travel services provider. With the ability to reach more than one billion people worldwide and
with more than 556 million monthly page impressions on its Web sites, CNN's global portfolio of
online and offline properties is unmatched by any other media organization in the world. By
partnering with this powerful platform, Leisureplanet is positioned to become one of the three
largest global online travel service providers in the world and thereby build long-term value for its
investors."
David Levy, president of Turner Broadcasting Sales International, said, "An integral part of this
overall partnership is the major $30 million cash commitment for advertising by Leisureplanet on
our Web sites and our television networks. No other news organization can give Leisureplanet
the same international reach and level of positive brand identification."
Pierre Kleinhans, CEO of Leisureplanet, said, "Given the consolidation that is taking place in the
online travel industry, our market position gives us a unique competitive edge. This position will
be enhanced by our partnership with CNN, as we will gain access to an unparalleled online and
offline distribution platform both in the United States and internationally. Moreover, the marketing
benefits of the partnership will be major drivers of our growth and our efforts to establish
Leisureplanet as the leading international brand for online leisure travel services."
About Leisureplanet
Leisureplanet is a leading international leisure travel e-commerce company, providing travel
booking and customer services to online 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 of more than 10,000 hotels; flight, car and hotel
reservation facilities; package holidays and cruises; and comprehensive proprietary travel guides
on more than 180 travel destinations.
Leisureplanet is committed to achieving leadership in global travel e-commerce by offering
tailored services in several European and international markets, supported by local customer
service agents throughout Europe and other international markets and presented in the local
language.
Operations include a multilingual call center and e-mail customer support facilities, two electronic
publishing units, an information system and Web site development unit, a hotel recruitment center
and an international travel agency partner network.
Leisureplanet is currently 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.
About CNN Interactive
CNN Interactive is responsible for the award-winning news site CNN.com, as well as eight
other Web sites and the distribution of CNN news content via other platforms such as PageNet
pagers and iMagic's PowerPhones. In February 1999, CNN Interactive launched CNN Mobile,
the most comprehensive and advanced 24-hour global and pan-regional news and information
service for GSM mobile phones.
The CNN Web sites, which include CNN.com, CNNfn.com and CNNSI.com, are among the
world's leading news and information Web sites. The CNN Web sites average more than 556
million page impressions a month and have served more than six billion page impressions from
January through November 1999. |
