The prospect of Expedia Group removing all of its vacation rentals from Expedia.com is as likely as senior executive Barry Diller telling his workforce he's cool with everyone working from home.
In Expedia Group's efficiency drive, there's a certain logic to killing some sub-brands as their market share plummets. But what about all those customers who still love Travelocity?
Look for Expedia's vacation rental unit, Vrbo, to keep gaining market share in geographies where it is already strong. But the brand hasn't always been nimble, and it may be missing out opportunities.
Six years after uniting the Orbitz, Travelocity and Expedia brands within Expedia Group, the company is now undertaking the grand experiment to differentiate their value propositions and target markets. If it doesn't work, brand consultants never get tired of offering their advice.
It was launched with much fanfare in 2002, but in the end, Zuji — which translates to "footprints" in Mandarin — failed miserably to leave a lasting imprint on Asia’s online travel scene.