CTIX: cheaptickets.com news out, one of few sizably profitable
company around. A solid value even without the internet name.
Wednesday September 8, 10:20 pm Eastern Time
Company Press Release
SOURCE: Cheap Tickets, Inc.
Cheap Tickets and Hotel Reservations Network Announce Strategic Agreement; One-Stop Internet Shopping for Discount Airfares and Hotel Accommodations
HONOLULU and DALLAS, Sept. 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Cheap Tickets, Inc. (Nasdaq: CTIX - news), a leading discount travel seller, and Hotel Reservations Network (HRN), a USA Company (Nasdaq: USAI - news) and one of the Internet's premier sources of discount hotel accommodations, today announced a new strategic agreement to serve the needs of value-conscious travelers.
According to the terms of the agreement, both parties will offer each other's booking services, effectively streamlining online travel planning and purchasing for budget-conscious consumers. Cheap Tickets will offer its customers hotel discounts through an HRN-powered booking tool on the home page and ticket-confirmation pages of its Internet site, located at www.cheaptickets.com. Users at HRN's site, located at www.hoteldiscount.com, are linked directly to Cheap Tickets' booking site.
One of the largest discount travel sites on the Internet, www.cheaptickets.com offers consumers more than 400,000 non-published discount airfares on 33 of the world's leading air carriers. With approximately 6, 500 new users registering daily, www.cheaptickets.com currently has more than 1.6 million registered users.
HRN is one of the most successful travel companies on the Internet for hotel reservations. HRN books approximately 15 percent of all hotel rooms on the Internet, offering savings of as much as 65 percent off hotel rack rates and up to 40 percent off corporate hotel rates. HRN also specializes in providing travelers accommodations for sold-out periods in major cities. Travelers can book accommodations via HRN's web site, www.hoteldiscount.com, for stays at more than 1,500 chain and independent boutique properties in 38 major cities in the U.S., Canada and Europe.
''We are thrilled to enter into this relationship with a travel leader like HRN,'' said Michael Hartley, founder and CEO of Cheap Tickets. ''Working together will help us further our common vision of helping consumers book affordable travel online quickly and efficiently.''
''We see this as a great opportunity for both parties,'' said Bob Diener, president of HRN. ''We're confident consumers will benefit as well from the convenience of having more discount travel-booking services at their fingertips.''
About Cheap Tickets
Founded in 1986, Cheap Tickets is one of the leading retail seller of discount tickets for domestic leisure air travel. Offering more than 400,000 non-published airfares on 33 of the world's leading airlines, Cheap Tickets sells directly to consumers through its Internet site, located at www.cheaptickets.com; through its toll-free number, 1-800-OKCHEAP; and at its 12 retail stores. During the first six months of 1999, Cheap Tickets sold more than 840,000 airline tickets, primarily through its call centers and its Internet site.
About HRN
Hotel Reservations Network, a USA company, is a leading free service offering discount hotel bookings and a primary source of discount accommodations on the Internet. Hoteldiscount.com, a service of HRN, accounts for approximately 80 percent of HRN's revenue. HRN also runs a call center operating 7 days a week, 24 hours a day. For more information call 1-800-96-HOTEL.
USA Networks, Inc. is a diversified media and electronic commerce company with assets that include the following: USA Network; SCI FI Channel; Studios USA; USA Films; USA Broadcasting; Home Shopping Network; Ticketmaster (www.ticketmaster.com) and USA Networks Interactive, which includes the Hotel Reservations Network (www.hoteldiscount.com), SCI FI.com and the Internet Shopping Network, whose primary service is First Auction (www.firstauction.com). USA Networks also owns a controlling interest in Ticketmaster Online-CitySearch, Inc., (www.citysearch.com and www.ticketmaster.com) an Internet provider of local content and online ticketing.
This communication shall not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to the registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such jurisdiction. ''Safe Harbor'' Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: Statements in this press release regarding the business of Cheap Tickets, Inc. which are not historical in facts are ''forward-looking statements'' that involve risks and uncertainties. These forward-looking statements include statements about the strategic relationship between Cheap Tickets and HRN, the offering by each company of the other company's booking services and consumers benefiting from this relationship. Actual results may differ materially due to factors including, but not limited to: uncertainty regarding demand for Cheap Tickets' products in general; the dependence on airlines for non-published fares; and the integration of new management. For a discussion of such risks and uncertainties, and other factors which could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements, see information contained in Cheap Tickets' Registration Statement on Form S-1 on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
SOURCE: Cheap Tickets, Inc. |
