Expedia Combines Travel Booking, Shopping and Streaming in New Platform

Expedia Group Media Solutions, Expedia’s travel advertising division, has released a new media platform that allows travelers to shop and book travel as they watch content. One of its first partners will be Brand USA, the U.S.’s national tourism marketing agency.

The Brand USA channel will be called GoUSA. In the channel, viewers will watch inspirational travel content and interactive maps that will highlight the diversity of trip possibilities. While viewing content in real time, users can book hotels, experiences and flights. In addition, Brand USA will be able track and measure the impact of their content on travelers’ booking decisions.

Expedia's platform launch follows the rising trend of tourism marketing agencies investing their advertising dollars on streaming services to inspire and drive visitation. Over the last few years, agencies have allocated larger shares of their marketing budgets and increased their investments by millions in streaming because of its targeting precision, management and flexibility.