(PR NEWSWIRE)
Preview Travel Signs Five Major Advertisers to its Growing Roster
AT&T, Hewlett-Packard, Discover Brokerage, AutoConnect, and Ticketmaster
Online-CitySearch Sign Six-Figure Deals With www.previewtravel.com
SAN FRANCISCO, March 1 /PRNewswire/ -- Preview Travel, Inc.
(Nasdaq: PTVL), a leading provider of branded online travel services for
leisure and small business travelers, today announced it has signed major
deals with five advertisers, each representing long-term, six-figure
advertising commitments. The advertisers include AT&T, Hewlett-Packard,
Discover Brokerage, AutoConnect(R) and Ticketmaster Online-CitySearch. Preview
Travel works with advertisers to tailor campaigns to best meet branding,
traffic-generation and customer-acquisition objectives.
"The Preview Travel customer is a tech-savvy consumer, comfortable
shopping for and purchasing a range of products online," said Chris McAndrews,
executive vice president of media sales for Preview Travel. "Our base of more
than six million registered subscribers, along with the integration of content
and commerce on our site, make Preview Travel particularly appealing to
marketers both within and outside the travel industry."
This round of advertising deals exemplifies the breadth of marketing
programs that Preview Travel offers. AT&T Direct(R) Service, which provides
travelers with access to the AT&T network from over 150 countries via
country-specific access numbers, is being promoted in Preview Travel's ticket
jackets and through additional online programs. Hewlett-Packard integrates
color printer messaging in Preview Travel's Map Center. The Discover Brokerage
program drives account acquisition through strategic online banners and
buttons.
AutoConnect (autoconnect.com) highlights its comprehensive site for used
car buying by sponsoring Preview Travel's Carfinder, which tracks and displays
the lowest car rental rates at top airport destinations both domestically and
internationally. Ticketmaster Online-CitySearch, the local information and
ticketing provider, targets Preview Travel users with interest in particular
cities by serving geographically targeted banners.
"Preview Travel's qualified audience and their geo-targeting capabilities
are a perfect fit for our comprehensive local information," said Dan Marriott,
executive vice president at Ticketmaster Online-CitySearch.
The number of advertisers on Preview Travel grew from 26 in 1997 to 130 by
the end of 1998. Preview Travel's advertising sales were $3.3 million in 1998,
an increase of 476 percent over advertising sales of $580,000 in 1997. Preview
Travel reported that advertising revenue accounted for 34 percent of total
revenue in the fourth quarter of 1998, compared to 13 percent of total revenue
in the fourth quarter of 1997.
About Preview Travel
Preview Travel, Inc. is a leading provider of branded online travel
services for leisure and small business travelers. It offers one-stop shopping
for airline tickets, vacation packages, car rentals, hotels and cruises, as
well as integrated access to travel information, merchandise, news and
resources. Preview Travel has more than 6 million registered subscribers and
reported gross bookings of $200.1 million in 1998. Preview Travel is one of
the Top 50 Most Visited Web Properties according to Media Metrix (Dec. '98)
and was ranked the Number One Online Travel Service by Gomez Advisors (Spring
'99). The company operates its own award-winning Web site at
www.previewtravel.com and the primary travel service on America Online at AOL
keyword: previewtravel. In addition, Preview Travel provides the primary
travel services on AOL.com, Excite, Lycos, Snap and USA Today.
NOTE: Except for the historical information contained herein, the matters
discussed in this news release are forward-looking statements that involve
risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially
from those in such forward-looking statements. Potential risks and
uncertainties include, without limitation, the company's dependence on its
ability to significantly increase its online revenues and sales volume, to
maintain and develop relationships with travel suppliers and strategic
partners and to attract and retain customers, potential adverse changes in
commission rates, unforeseen events affecting the travel industry, and the
company's dependence on its ability to establish its brand. These and other
risk factors are described in detail in the company's Annual Report on Form
10-K for the year ended December 31, 1997 and Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q
for the quarter ended September 1998, in the prospectus dated April 30, 1998
relating to the company's secondary public offering, and in the company's
other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
SOURCE Preview Travel, Inc.
-0- 03/01/99
/CONTACT: Scott Radcliffe of Preview Travel, Inc., 415-439-1370, or
sradcliffe@previewtravel.com; or Christina Hamlett of Fleishman Hillard, for
Preview Travel, 415-356-1083, or hamlettc@fleishman.com, for Preview Travel/
/Web site: previewtravel.com
(PTVL)
CO: Preview Travel, Inc.
ST: California
IN: LEI MLM ADV
SU:
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