CheapTickets

CheapTickets is an online travel-services brand serving leisure travelers in the United States. Its offering has included airline tickets, hotel accommodations, vacation rentals, rental cars, customized vacation packages, and cruises. The business originated in Honolulu in 1986 after Mid Pacific Air provided 3,000 inter-island airline tickets to Regency Media, an advertising firm connected with founders Michael and Sandra Hartley, as payment for services when the agency closed its Honolulu branch. The tickets were advertised through newspaper classified advertisements and sold within two weeks, prompting the Hartleys to develop the operation into a broader ticket-resale and travel-distribution business. CheapTickets initially operated as an airline-ticket consolidator. It acquired blocks or allocations of seats from airlines at negotiated rates and resold them at prices below the carriers' ordinary published fares. This model positioned the company around price-conscious leisure travel and gave it a role distinct from a traditional full-service travel agency. The company opened its first call center in Honolulu in 1987 and subsequently expanded its telephone-sales infrastructure to Colorado Springs, Lakeport, Los Angeles, and Tampa. For a period it also maintained physical agency locations in Hawaii, California, New York, and Washington. The company entered online travel during the early growth of consumer Internet commerce, launching its website in 1997. Its digital expansion made CheapTickets an early participant in Internet-based travel sales and gradually reduced the importance of its physical branches. By the end of 2003, the brick-and-mortar locations had been closed; they represented only about 2 percent of the company's business at that point. The brand's development therefore reflects the wider shift from telephone and storefront travel agencies toward searchable online inventory and self-service booking. CheapTickets was acquired by Cendant in 2000. In July 2006, it became part of the Travelport Travel Distribution Services Division when Travelport was sold to the Blackstone Group. That division later became Orbitz Worldwide, Inc., making CheapTickets part of the Orbitz portfolio and a wholly owned subsidiary of Orbitz Worldwide. Expedia Inc.'s acquisition of Orbitz Worldwide subsequently placed CheapTickets within Expedia Group. The brand is therefore best understood as a consumer-facing leisure-travel label operating within a larger online travel and distribution organization rather than as an independent publicly traded company. Its core positioning has centered on accessible travel pricing and convenience across multiple booking categories. Alongside air tickets, the brand's stated scope has included hotels, vacation rentals, rental vehicles, packaged holidays, and cruises. Publicly available reference material does not provide a current standalone financial profile, a separate stock listing, or detailed present-day operating metrics for CheapTickets itself. Its historical importance lies chiefly in its early airline-consolidation model, its transition to Internet sales in 1997, and its integration into the Cendant, Orbitz, and Expedia corporate succession.

CheapTickets began in Honolulu, Hawaii, in 1986. Its founding story is tied to Mid Pacific Air, an inter-island carrier that gave 3,000 tickets to Regency Media as compensation for advertising services when the agency closed its Honolulu branch. Michael and Sandra Hartley arranged for the tickets to be promoted through newspaper classified advertisements. The inventory sold in approximately two weeks, demonstrating demand for lower-priced air travel and providing the basis for a new business. The company developed into an airline-ticket consolidator. Rather than relying only on standard published fares, it obtained airline seats at negotiated rates and resold them to consumers at prices intended to be lower than normal airline pricing. This model made the company particularly relevant to leisure travelers seeking inexpensive transportation. In 1987, CheapTickets opened its first call center in Honolulu. It later added call centers in Colorado Springs, Colorado; Lakeport, California; Los Angeles, California; and Tampa, Florida, creating a broader telephone-based sales network. During its expansion, CheapTickets also operated traditional travel-agency locations in Hawaii, California, New York, and Washington. These physical outlets became less important as the company's telephone and online channels grew. CheapTickets launched its website in 1997, placing it among the earlier travel businesses to sell travel products over the Internet. The online channel supported a broader transformation of the company from a primarily air-ticket consolidator into a multi-category leisure-travel service. By the end of 2003, the physical agency sites had been closed. They accounted for only around 2 percent of the company's business at the time, illustrating the extent to which its activity had shifted away from storefront retail. The brand's online scope came to include airline tickets, hotels, vacation rentals, rental cars, customized vacation packages, and cruises. Corporate ownership changed several times. Cendant acquired CheapTickets in 2000. In July 2006, the brand was included in the sale of Travelport to the Blackstone Group as part of Travelport's Travel Distribution Services Division. That division later became Orbitz Worldwide, Inc., and CheapTickets operated as a wholly owned subsidiary of Orbitz Worldwide. After Expedia Inc. acquired Orbitz, CheapTickets became part of Expedia Group. One notable legal episode occurred in 2009. New Jersey brought an action against Orbitz concerning tickets listed on CheapTickets Exchange for a Bruce Springsteen concert before the public onsale date. The allegations invoked the state's Consumer Fraud Act. Orbitz relied on Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, and the case, Milgram v. Orbitz, was dismissed. The episode is part of the brand's documented history because it concerned a CheapTickets-branded exchange, although the named corporate defendant was Orbitz. The available reference material does not establish a separate current corporate structure, standalone financial results, current executive roster, or independently traded security for CheapTickets. Its documented trajectory is primarily one of entrepreneurial ticket consolidation, early Internet adoption, diversification into leisure-travel categories, and successive integration into larger travel-distribution groups.

• 2009

  Milgram v. Orbitz is dismissed

  [1]CheapTicketsen.wikipedia.org

  A New Jersey lawsuit concerning CheapTickets Exchange listings was dismissed after Orbitz successfully invoked Section 230 immunity.

• 2006

  Travelport transaction places CheapTickets in the Travel Distribution Services Division

  [1]CheapTicketsen.wikipedia.org

  CheapTickets was included in the Travelport Travel Distribution Services Division during the sale of Travelport to the Blackstone Group.

• 2003

  Physical agency locations close

  [1]CheapTicketsen.wikipedia.org

  CheapTickets closed its brick-and-mortar agency locations by the end of the year; those sites had represented approximately 2 percent of the business.

• 2000

  Acquisition by Cendant

  [1]CheapTicketsen.wikipedia.org

  Cendant acquired CheapTickets as the brand entered a larger corporate travel portfolio.

• 1997

  Website launches

  [1]CheapTicketsen.wikipedia.org

  The company launched an online booking website, becoming an early participant in Internet travel sales.

• 1987

  First call center opens

  [1]CheapTicketsen.wikipedia.org

  CheapTickets opened its first call center in Honolulu and later expanded its telephone-sales network to several mainland United States locations.

• 1986

  CheapTickets is founded in Honolulu

  [1]CheapTicketsen.wikipedia.org

  Michael and Sandra Hartley established the business after 3,000 Mid Pacific Air tickets were used to launch a successful newspaper-classified sales effort.

• CheapTickets enters Expedia Group

  [1]CheapTicketsen.wikipedia.org

  Following Expedia Inc.'s acquisition of Orbitz Worldwide, CheapTickets became part of Expedia Group.

A price-oriented online travel-services brand for leisure travelers, combining discounted airfares with broader holiday and accommodation booking.

• Air travel · 1986

  Airline tickets

  Airline tickets were the brand's original and defining offering. CheapTickets began as a consolidator that acquired seats at negotiated rates and resold them at fares positioned below airlines' ordinary published prices. Its later online model continued to make flight booking the central entry point for leisure travelers.

• Accommodation

  Hotels

  Hotel booking expanded CheapTickets beyond its original air-ticket business and supported its role as a broader online travel service. The offering is aimed at leisure customers arranging accommodation alongside transportation.

• Accommodation

  Vacation rentals

  Vacation rentals form part of the brand's leisure-travel inventory, providing an alternative to conventional hotel accommodation for customers planning holidays and longer stays.

• Ground transportation

  Rental cars

  Rental-car reservations broaden the travel journey covered by CheapTickets, allowing customers to arrange local transportation in conjunction with air travel, lodging, or vacation packages.

• Packaged travel

  Customized vacation packages

  Customized vacation packages combine travel components into more complete leisure itineraries. The reference material identifies these packages as part of CheapTickets' multi-category booking scope but does not provide further details on package design.

• Leisure travel

  Cruises

  Cruise booking is another leisure-travel category associated with the brand. It extends CheapTickets' product range beyond flights and land-based accommodation into cruise holidays.

• 2009

  Milgram v. Orbitz and CheapTickets Exchange listings

  New Jersey alleged that Orbitz violated the state's Consumer Fraud Act by offering tickets through CheapTickets Exchange for a Bruce Springsteen concert before the first public sale date. Orbitz asserted protection under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, and the case was dismissed.

  Source

Read more

• 2006

  Integration into the Travelport distribution structureM&A

  Background

  Travelport's Travel Distribution Services Division was being transferred in a transaction involving the Blackstone Group.

  Action taken

  CheapTickets was included in the division transferred with the Travelport sale.

  Aftermath

  The division later became Orbitz Worldwide, under which CheapTickets operated as a wholly owned subsidiary.

  Source

• 2003

  Close brick-and-mortar agency locationsStrategy

  Background

  Physical locations represented approximately 2 percent of the company's business by the end of 2003.

  Action taken

  CheapTickets closed its agency locations in Hawaii, California, New York, and Washington.

  Aftermath

  The brand's distribution model became centered on online and other remote sales channels.

  Source

• 2000

  Cendant acquisitionM&A

  Background

  CheapTickets had developed from an airline consolidator into a broader travel-services business.

  Action taken

  Cendant acquired the company.

  Aftermath

  CheapTickets became part of a larger corporate travel portfolio and later moved through the Travelport and Orbitz structures.

  Source

• 1997

  Move into Internet travel salesStrategy

  Background

  Consumer travel purchasing was beginning to shift from telephone and storefront agencies toward online search and booking.

  Action taken

  CheapTickets launched a website and developed an Internet sales channel.

  Aftermath

  The online channel became increasingly important, while the company's physical agency network was later closed.

  Source

• Entry into Expedia GroupM&A

  Background

  CheapTickets was operating within Orbitz Worldwide when Expedia Inc. acquired Orbitz.

  Action taken

  The Orbitz acquisition transferred CheapTickets into Expedia Group.

  Aftermath

  CheapTickets became a brand within Expedia Group's broader online travel organization.

  Source

• CheapTickets became part of Expedia Group through the Orbitz acquisition[1]CheapTicketsen.wikipedia.org

  M&A

  Expedia Inc.'s acquisition of Orbitz Worldwide placed CheapTickets, previously an Orbitz subsidiary, within Expedia Group.

1. 1CheapTicketsen.wikipedia.org