Subscribe
Login
Online Travel

Kayak fended off Priceline’s advances for years and approached another company about a merger

Dennis Schaal

Photo Credit: Priceline had its eyes on Kayak's technology and team (above) for years Kayak

Skift Take

You always hear that in the travel industry "everyone is always talking to everyone" about possible business combination, but in this instance, Priceline engaged Kayak over the years and had its eye on Kayak for a long time.

Priceline's pending $1.8 billion acquisition of Kayak may have come as a shock to most of the travel industry, but Priceline and Kayak conducted high-level discussions about it "from time to time over the past few years." Details about how the deal went down emerged today in a Priceline financial disclosure. In a lengthy section of the document entitled "Background of the Merger," Priceline outlines how none of those prior discussions over the years led to a detailed acquisition proposal, and each time the Kayak's board decided to continue on its path toward an

Online travel coverage is exclusive for Skift Pro subscribers.

Subscribe for full access to all Skift coverage for as low as $55 a month.
See the latest online travel headlines.

Apple Pay, Google Pay, Paypal, VISA, Mastercard, Discover, American Express

Already a subscriber? Login