Dennis Schaal

Newly public company La Quinta has been doing some innovative things, and it is a hotel chain that is in growth mode.

What does Priceline's $1.8 billion acquisition of metasearcher Kayak mean as the first-year anniversary approaches? If you are a big-time online travel agency, you gotta have one. Just ask Expedia, which got its hands on Trivago soon after Priceline made its move on Kayak.

Priceline participates in rivals' hotel metasearch sites such as TripAdvisor and Trivago, but it is tiny compared to what it spends with Google and the $240 million Priceline will spend on TV advertising in 2014. Still, there is plenty of gamesmanship going on behind the scenes as Priceline has opted out of TripAdvisor's new book-on TripAdvisor solution.

Priceline outlasted Expedia in the room-night growth arms race, posting 32% growth to Expedia's 24%. Although there was a slight dent in the armor, as Priceline room-night growth was slightly faster a year earlier.

There are big bucks at stake as CWTSato Travel and Concur battle it out over government travel contracts. CWT recently got bragging rights by landing the DOT contract, and the Department of Commerce is a possibility, as well.

Five years from now some of the personalized perks that Concur CEO Steve Singh envisions as part of the perfect trip will be taken for granted and second nature. We like our eggs scrambled, no cheese.

TripAdvisor and travel and expense company Concur are soul mates of sorts. Separately and coincidentally, on May 6 they both touted their visions of facilitating the "perfect trip." TripAdvisor plans on emphasizing this experiential messaging in its upcoming ad campaign, and doesn't plan on stooping to the price-comparison thrust of its rivals.

Despite the stock hit that TripAdvisor took after its Q1 earnings came out, the company is really on a roll. TripAdvisor increased its full-year revenue guidance for 2014 -- and that doesn't even count the lift it is expected to get from a renewed TV advertising campaign and Instant Booking.

Concur will likely eventually get its act together, and get past the problematic rollout of its government travel solution to civilian federal government agencies. Still, it was disingenuous of Concur officials to tell investors that everything is going smoothly when there are actually major problems with the program's introduction.

With the investment, Concur continues on its forward-looking funding binge, investing in startups that are doing something different and are of interest to business travelers.