Shatner and Priceline put pressure on Hotwire as parent Expedia's Q1 net loss widens
Skift Take
Things have come full circle in the decade-long Priceline-Hotwire skirmish. Over the last couple of years, Priceline officials conceded that Hotwire was taking share from Priceline's Name Your Own Price business, which has been de-emphasized. Now Expedia execs say Priceline's Express Deals have been eating Hotwire's lunch.
William Shatner's Priceline Negotiator character died awhile back, but the reincarnated Shatner, teaming with actress Kaley Cuoco in a series of commercials, have become Hotwire's worst nightmare.
That tidbit emerged as Expedia Inc. today reported that its first quarter net loss widened dramatically as Priceline's recently launched Express Deals and the accompanying Shatner-Cuoco ad campaign, along with car-rental consolidation, put pressure on Expedia's Hotwire unit.
Expedia officials said Hotwire, which offers hotels and car rentals on a semi-opaque basis -- consumers know
