Hilton Widens Distribution With Milestone Priceline Europe Partnership

Hilton International today announced the signing of a new deal with leading European online reservations provider, Active Hotels (part of Priceline Europe). The partnership, which gives Active Hotels full access to Hilton’s inventory, will go live in the UK and France in November. The Spanish, German and Italian markets will follow in 2006.

The milestone deal is another success for Hilton as it continues to grow its international distribution network via strong partnership deals. The deal is also in line with the equitable distribution contract terms announced by Hilton in September 2004*.

Making the announcement at the PhoCusWright Executive Conference in Paris today, Jurgen Fischer, President, Commercial Operations Group, Hilton International, said: “Expansion of the distribution network remains a key focus for Hilton and strong partnerships are the key to success in this area. Today’s deal marks the start of such a partnership and is a great achievement for both Hilton and Active Hotels.

“We have watched the growth of Active Hotels with admiration – their evolution from an entrepreneurial start-up in 1999 to the leading company they are now is very impressive. Active Hotels has a phenomenal reach amongst the leisure and business market and we are delighted to announce a partnership that will enable wider access to Hilton’s best deals and extensive inventory.”

Active Hotels, which recently won the ‘Growth Strategy of the Year’ award in the regional heats of the National Business Awards, was created to help hoteliers capture the highly lucrative online travel market. The company was acquired by Priceline in September 2004.

Andrew Phillipps, CEO, Priceline Europe, also at the PhoCusWright Conference in Paris today, commented: “Our business has gone from strength to strength since its inception in 1999. The fact that we can now offer our customers and affiliate partners access to one of the World’s leading hotel brands is yet another landmark achievement for us.

“Today’s deal is the start of a great partnership. Active Hotels is delighted to open up an extensive new distribution channel for Hilton and at the same time we would like to warmly welcome them to our portfolio of more than 11,000 hotels.”

***

Supporting information:
• Hilton recommends that anyone who wants to ensure they get the best deal available on a hotel either books via an approved Hilton distributor, or by going direct to Hilton via the Hilton brand websites.
• Hilton operates a Best Rate Guarantee for anyone booking through Hilton’s website, through Hilton Reservations Worldwide, or direct with our hotels. Subject to certain exceptions, this states that customers will always receive the best possible rates by booking this way. In the unlikely event a customer does find a cheaper rate elsewhere within 24 hours of the booking, Hilton will match the lower rate and adjust the bill by $50, or local equivalent.

*In September 2004, David Michels, CEO of Hilton Group plc, confirmed Hilton would cut ties with distributors who persist in operating misleading pricing practices and demand inequitable conditions. Hilton’s current contract terms meet follow the following objectives:
• Sales Transparency: ensuring all available Hilton deals are promoted, rather than just those that offer the highest reward for the distributor
• Fair payment terms: all distributors pay on time to standard terms
• Equitable Commissions: ensuring rewards are based on the value added by the distributor
• Predatory Marketing: ensuring the Hilton brand is not abused
• Balanced inventory risk: sharing the risk of room allocations between Hilton and the distributor

Media enquiries:
Mandy Zakhour, European Media Relations, Priceline Europe, [email protected] tel: + 44 (0) 1223 578134 or +44 (0) 7725 202 827

Sarah Schofield, Fishburn Hedges,
[email protected] tel: + 44 (0) 20 7544 3093 or +44 (0) 7958 734686

Notes to editor:

About Hilton International
Hilton International (HI), an operating division of the UK based Hilton Group plc, owns the rights to the Hilton brand name throughout the world, with the exception of the USA and Mexico, where the Hilton brand is owned and managed by Hilton Hotels Corporation (HHC). Furthermore, Hilton International and Hilton Hotels Corporation share the Hilton brand within Canada.

Hilton International operates 403 hotels, with some 261 branded Hilton and 142 under the mid-market Scandic brand. Under a joint venture agreement, Hilton International and the North American based Hilton Hotels Corporation share responsibility for the Conrad brand, which includes 17 hotels in 12 countries. A global marketing alliance between Hilton International and Hilton Hotels Corporation extends the number of hotels operated by both companies worldwide to over 2,700 – over 500 of which are branded Hilton.

Hilton International employs over 71,000 staff in 80 countries.

For further information on Hilton International, please visit our corporate website, at: www.hiltongroup.com

High resolution Hilton images are available for the media to download free of charge on www.vismedia-online.com

About Active Hotels (Priceline Europe, part of priceline.com, NASDAQ PCLN)
Active Hotels (Priceline Europe, part of priceline.com, Nasdaq: PCLN), is one of Europe’s leading online reservation providers to the hotel industry. The company has over 11,000 hotels, which it promotes through 1,500 distribution partners, including some of the market leaders in online travel. See: www.activehotels.com for more details.

In July 2005, Priceline acquired Amsterdam-based Bookings B.V. to complement its investment in Active Hotels and build on its European operations.

Combined, Active Hotels and Bookings have exclusive rates with almost 18,000 hotel properties, giving Priceline Europe a market leading position in Europe.