Priceline.com
An American online travel agency known for discount travel bookings and its former Name Your Own Price model.
Last updated August 21, 2026
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Overview
Priceline.com is an American online travel agency headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut. It connects travelers with suppliers of accommodation, air travel, rental cars, vacation packages and related travel services. The brand became widely recognized through its Name Your Own Price system, a reverse-auction model that allowed customers to propose a price for opaque travel inventory. Customers selected broad parameters such as destination area, travel dates and service category, while the specific supplier or property was generally disclosed only after a transaction was accepted. This model helped Priceline distinguish itself from conventional travel agencies during the early growth of internet commerce. The company was founded in 1997 by Jay S. Walker, with entrepreneur Michael Loeb involved in its creation and early funding. Priceline went public in 1999, and Richard S. Braddock, formerly a senior Citicorp executive, served as chief executive during an important early phase. Walker left the company in 2000. The business experimented with applying its pricing mechanism beyond travel, including gasoline, groceries, long-distance telephone service, automobiles, second-hand goods and home loans. Most of those initiatives were discontinued, although some technology was licensed to outside businesses. Priceline later broadened its business beyond customer-specified bids. Its conventional booking tools have included published hotel and airfare prices, Express Deals for undisclosed hotels within a defined area, and Pricebreakers, which presents a group of possible hotels before allocating one after payment. The company also developed a large supplier network, with reference materials describing partnerships involving hundreds of airlines and hundreds of thousands of hotels. The Priceline corporate organization changed its name to The Priceline Group in 2014, separating the corporate identity from the Priceline consumer brand. The group subsequently became Booking Holdings, whose portfolio includes Booking.com, KAYAK and other travel businesses. Priceline.com is now one of Booking Holdings' principal consumer brands rather than an independent publicly traded company. Brett Keller became chief executive of the Priceline brand in 2016. The original Name Your Own Price travel model was gradually retired: flight bidding ended in 2016, rental-car bidding in 2018 and hotel bidding in 2020. Priceline continues to operate as a mainstream online travel platform, emphasizing discounted accommodation, flights, rental cars, vacation packages and flexible deal-discovery tools. Its brand positioning combines broad inventory, mobile and web booking, opaque or bundled discounts, and promotional marketing built around recognizable entertainment personalities.
History
Priceline.com emerged in the late 1990s as an internet travel intermediary built around customer-controlled pricing. Jay S. Walker founded the company in 1997, with Michael Loeb contributing to its early creation and financing. Its central innovation was Name Your Own Price, which allowed users to submit a bid for an airline ticket, hotel room, rental car or vacation package. The customer could specify broad conditions such as dates, location and service level, but the supplier and exact itinerary or property were often hidden until the bid was accepted. This opaque structure enabled suppliers to sell excess inventory without publicly advertising the lowest available rate. The company went public in 1999. Walker departed in 2000, while Richard S. Braddock became an important early chief executive and helped guide the business through its initial public-company period before leaving in 2004. Priceline also pursued several non-travel experiments during the dot-com era, including gasoline, groceries, long-distance telephone service, automobiles and a peer-to-peer marketplace called Priceline Yard Sales. These projects were discontinued or separated from the core travel business. The company's pricing technology was also licensed to eBay in 2002, and a home-loan rate service continued under an external license. Over time, Priceline expanded its conventional travel-booking capabilities. Rather than requiring customers to bid, Express Deals presented discounted prices for hotels while withholding the property's identity until purchase. Pricebreakers later offered a small set of possible hotels, with the final property selected after payment. These tools preserved elements of the original opaque-inventory concept while making the process more predictable for customers. The brand also maintained ordinary search and booking services for hotels, flights, rental cars and vacation packages. Marketing was central to Priceline's identity. William Shatner became its principal spokesman in 1997, initially appearing as a comic pitchman and later as the Priceline Negotiator. Leonard Nimoy briefly replaced him in the advertising narrative in 2004, after which Shatner returned as the principal figure. The Negotiator character was theatrically killed in a 2012 campaign, but later advertisements continued to use his spirit. Kaley Cuoco joined Shatner in advertising in 2013 as his fictional daughter. A 2012 commercial involving Theresa Caputo generated criticism related to its treatment of spiritual and Native American imagery. The corporate structure evolved as Priceline became part of a larger online-travel group. In 2014, Priceline.com Incorporated changed its corporate name to The Priceline Group, separating the parent company's identity from the Priceline consumer brand. The group later became Booking Holdings and retained Priceline as one of its major brands alongside Booking.com, KAYAK and other travel services. In 2015, the group announced an additional investment in China's Ctrip to expand its position in the Chinese market. The original bidding system was progressively withdrawn. Flight bidding ended in 2016, rental-car bidding in 2018 and hotel bidding in 2020. Priceline consequently shifted from a broad reverse-auction identity toward a mainstream online travel agency centered on published rates, opaque discounts, package offers and supplier breadth. The brand remains active under Booking Holdings, serving customers in a large international market through its website and related digital channels.
- 2020
Hotel bidding discontinued
[1]Priceline ended Name Your Own Price hotel deals, completing the withdrawal of the original bidding model from its main travel categories.
- 2018
Rental-car bidding discontinued
[1]The brand retired Name Your Own Price transactions for rental cars.
- 2016
Flight bidding discontinued
[1]Priceline ended Name Your Own Price deals for flights.
- 2015
Additional investment in Ctrip
[1]The parent group announced an additional investment in Ctrip as part of its China-market strategy.
- 2014
Corporate name changes to The Priceline Group
[1]The parent company adopted The Priceline Group name to distinguish the corporate entity from the Priceline brand.
- 2007
Airfare booking fees removed
[1]Priceline permanently removed booking fees from published airfares.
- 2002
Travel technology licensed to eBay
[1]Priceline licensed its Name Your Own Price travel system to eBay.
- 2000
Founder leaves the company
[1]Jay S. Walker departed Priceline as Richard S. Braddock took a leading executive role.
- 1999
Initial public offering
[1]Priceline became a publicly traded company during the expansion of internet commerce.
- 1997
Priceline is founded
[1]Jay S. Walker founded Priceline, with Michael Loeb involved in its early creation and financing.
Products and positioning
A discount-oriented online travel agency combining conventional booking with opaque-deal products and broad international travel inventory.
Accommodation · 1997
Hotel bookings
Priceline provides searchable hotel inventory with conventional published rates as well as discounted and opaque options. Its hotel tools have included Express Deals, which disclose a general area and other attributes without revealing the exact property until purchase, and Pricebreakers, which presents several possible hotels before one is assigned after payment.
Air travel · 1997
Flight bookings
The brand offers online search and booking for airline tickets from a broad supplier network. Priceline historically used Name Your Own Price bidding for flights, but ended that feature in 2016 and now emphasizes published fares, deal discovery and standard reservation flows.
Ground transportation · 1997
Rental-car bookings
Priceline enables customers to compare and reserve rental cars through its online platform. Rental-car bidding was part of the original Name Your Own Price portfolio, but the bidding product was discontinued in 2018 as the brand moved toward conventional and promotional reservation products.
Travel packages
Vacation packages
Vacation packages combine travel components such as flights and accommodation through Priceline's booking platform. These packages extend the brand beyond individual reservations and support its broader discount-travel positioning.
Opaque travel pricing · 1997
Name Your Own Price
Name Your Own Price was Priceline's signature reverse-auction system. Customers submitted a price and selected general travel parameters, while the exact supplier was withheld until a successful purchase. The model was progressively retired from flights, rental cars and hotels between 2016 and 2020.
Controversies
2013
Wiki-PR allegations
Priceline was listed among companies accused of using or being connected to Wiki-PR, a public-relations operation alleged to have influenced Wikipedia articles for commercial purposes. The available reference describes an accusation rather than establishing a final legal finding against Priceline.
2012
Resort-fee disclosure criticism
Critics argued that Priceline's hotel bidding process could leave mandatory resort fees outside the customer's initial bid, producing additional charges after a reservation was won. The criticism arose amid Federal Trade Commission guidance that required clearer disclosure of such fees.
2012
Controversy over Theresa Caputo advertisement
A commercial featuring Theresa Caputo, presented as communicating with the deceased Priceline Negotiator, drew criticism from skeptics and others who objected to the commercial's treatment of spiritual practices, including imagery associated with Native American smudging.
Marketing campaigns
- 2013Shatner and Kaley Cuoco family campaign
United States
Kaley Cuoco joined William Shatner in commercials as the fictional daughter of the Priceline Negotiator.
Outcome. The campaign extended Priceline's entertainment-led advertising approach.
- 2012The Negotiator's apparent death
United States
A series of commercials showed the Negotiator apparently dying when a bus fell from a bridge and exploded, after which the campaign continued to feature his spirit.
Outcome. The storyline generated substantial attention and was followed by later advertisements that brought Shatner back in a new setting.
- 2007The Priceline Negotiator
United States
A campaign developed with Butler, Shine, Stern & Partners recast Shatner as the Priceline Negotiator, a comic character representing the company's ability to negotiate travel prices.
Outcome. The Negotiator became the brand's central advertising property for several years.
- 2004Leonard Nimoy replacement campaign
United States
Leonard Nimoy temporarily replaced William Shatner in the brand's advertising narrative, using their shared Star Trek association as a creative device.
Outcome. Shatner subsequently resumed his role as Priceline's principal advertising figure.
- 1997William Shatner as Priceline spokesman
United States
William Shatner became the face of Priceline in its early advertising, helping the new online travel company explain its unconventional pricing model through humorous television spots.
Outcome. Shatner became strongly associated with the brand and later returned as the Priceline Negotiator.
Brand decisions
2020
End Name Your Own Price hotel dealsGeneration changeBackground
Hotel bidding was the last major travel application of Priceline's original reverse-auction model.
Action taken
The brand discontinued Name Your Own Price hotel deals.
Aftermath
Priceline's active offer set became centered on published rates, Express Deals, Pricebreakers and standard booking products.
2018
End Name Your Own Price rental-car dealsGeneration changeBackground
The company continued retiring the original bidding model from its travel categories.
Action taken
Priceline ended Name Your Own Price rental-car transactions.
Aftermath
Rental-car reservations continued through conventional booking and promotional products.
2016
End Name Your Own Price flight dealsGeneration changeBackground
The brand was shifting from customer bidding toward more predictable online travel transactions.
Action taken
Priceline discontinued Name Your Own Price deals for flights.
Aftermath
Flight customers were directed toward published fares and other deal formats.
2015
Increase investment in CtripM&ABackground
The group sought exposure to China's expanding online travel market.
Action taken
The Priceline Group announced an additional $250 million investment in Ctrip.
Aftermath
The investment supported the group's international-market strategy and relationship with a major Chinese travel platform.
Additional investment. $250 million (2015 announcement)
2014
Separate the corporate identity from the consumer brandStrategyBackground
The parent company had expanded into a portfolio of international online travel businesses, making the Priceline name less suitable as the sole corporate identity.
Action taken
Priceline.com Incorporated changed its corporate name to The Priceline Group.
Aftermath
Priceline.com continued as a principal consumer brand while the parent organization managed a broader travel portfolio.
2007
Remove fees from published airfaresPrice changeBackground
Priceline sought to make published airfare offers more competitive and easier to compare.
Action taken
The company permanently eliminated booking fees on published airfares.
Aftermath
The change strengthened the brand's discount and price-transparency positioning for airfare customers.
Recent events
- 2020
Priceline ends hotel bidding[1]
Product generation
The final major travel category using the Name Your Own Price system, hotel bookings, was discontinued.
- 2018
Priceline ends rental-car bidding[1]
Product generation
The brand retired Name Your Own Price transactions for rental cars.
- 2016
Priceline ends flight bidding[1]
Product generation
The brand discontinued Name Your Own Price deals for flights.
- 2016
Brett Keller becomes Priceline brand CEO[1]
Leadership change
Brett Keller was named chief executive of the Priceline.com brand.
- 2015
Priceline invests in Ctrip[1]
M&A
The Priceline Group announced an additional investment of $250 million in Chinese online travel company Ctrip.
- 2014
The Priceline Group adopts a new corporate name[1]
Other
Priceline.com Incorporated changed its corporate name to The Priceline Group to distinguish the parent organization from the consumer Priceline brand.
- 2007
Priceline removes booking fees from published airfares[1]
Pricing
The company announced the permanent elimination of booking fees on published airfares.
- 2002
Priceline licenses its travel pricing system to eBay[1]
Other
Priceline licensed its Name Your Own Price travel technology to eBay.
- 1999
Priceline becomes a publicly traded company[1]
Other
The company completed its public offering during the early internet-commerce boom.
- 1997
Priceline launches an online travel reverse-auction model[1]
Product launch
The new company became known for allowing customers to propose prices for selected categories of opaque travel inventory.
Sources2 sources
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