Articles tagged “thefork”

Tripadvisor now has almost all its focus on experiences and may not see the need to sell Viator — a disappointment for some investors.

The sale gives Tripadvisor the cash to chase the $1 trillion experiences market through Viator.

Tripadvisor had a tough first quarter, adversely impacted by cancellations in Mexico, Hawaii, and elsewhere because of the Middle East conflict. Its quest for strategic alternatives has been a multiyear slog.

Starboard Value will likely find plenty of support among Tripadvisor's long-suffering shareholders.

Tripadvisor has borne the brunt of declining SEO traffic from Google for many years. Now AI Overviews are pinching Tripadvisor even harder.

The perennial tug between Tripadvisor and Viator experiences, and the consequent market confusion, will seemingly persist under the new strategy as neither will be the lead experiences brand. Hotel metasearch will be downplayed but managed for profitability.

Tripadvisor is feeling the heat from activist investor Starboard Value. The merging of Brand Tripadvisor and Viator's operations should enable Tripadvisor to wrangle some cost efficiencies.

So far Starboard Value hasn't publicly called for any leadership changes at Tripadvisor, but the activist investor's views aren't exactly a ringing endorsement.

In 2014, when Viator was nearly 20 years old and struggling for an exit, Tripadvisor scooped it up for $200 million. Now it could be worth $2 billion.

An activist investor might be just what Tripadvisor needs now that its corporate structure has changed. Analysts have plenty of ideas on what that investor might advocate for, although so far Starboard Value hasn't publicly discussed a game plan.