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Expedia.com & Citigroup Join Forces to Transform Rewards Programs


WEBWIRE

November 07, 2006 - Bellevue, Washington and New York, New York – Expedia.com, the world’s leading online travel company, and Citigroup, the world’s leading financial services company today announced a strategic relationship to significantly expand ThankYou Network. As the exclusive travel partner of ThankYou Network, Expedia is launching a rewards program that will enable its customers to earn ThankYou Points and rewards for eligible travel they book on Expedia.com. In addition, Expedia.com is powering the redemption of travel rewards on ThankYou Network’s website, www.thankyounetwork.com.

Founded by Citigroup, the ten million-member ThankYou Network is a free rewards program that lets members get points for doing what they already do – from using eligible Citi credit cards, banking at Citibank with an eligible checking account, and now, booking eligible travel on Expedia.com – and combine these points all in one ThankYou Member Account. ThankYou Network takes rewards programs to the next level by allowing members to pool points from multiple activities so they earn points and redeem for rewards faster.

“Expedia is a powerful and natural addition to ThankYou Network and advances ThankYou Network towards becoming the largest and best-in-class rewards program of its kind,“ said Peter Knitzer, Executive Vice President, Consumer Franchise Management, Citigroup’s Global Consumer Group - North America. ”This new partnership delivers to ThankYou Members the rewards program that they want – one that is flexible, with accelerated point-earning opportunities and easily attainable rewards, encompassing thousands of unique rewards and experiences"

Expedia and Citigroup are leveraging their industry-leading brands to deliver a unique value proposition to U.S. consumers. With its new rewards program featuring ThankYou Points, Expedia is the first online travel company to reward U.S. consumers for eligible travel purchases made with any credit or debit card. In addition, Expedia travelers can now earn ThankYou Points on their travel purchases across multiple airline and hotel brands, giving them the flexibility to book the trip that’s right for them.

“What’s unique about ThankYou Network is that it provides travelers with choice, flexibility, and the ability to earn points quickly and get rewards faster,” said Paul Brown, President of Expedia North America. “Our travelers value the unbeatable choice, flexibility and value Expedia provides them. Now with ThankYou Network, Expedia travelers get even more value for the travel dollar, with the freedom to earn rewards points across multiple travel providers, including air/hotel packages, hotel, cruise or activities and total choice and flexibility over how they redeem their rewards. It’s a perfect fit with Expedia’s approach to making it easy for travelers to assemble their trip their way.”

Expedia’s goal was to launch a rewards program for its customers that complemented the frequent traveler programs of its supply partners. Now consumers can earn ThankYou Points on top of any points or miles they would already be earning from an airlines’ frequent flyer or hotels’ frequent guest programs.

“It can be a great way for ThankYou Members to maximize their points with existing hotel and air rewards programs,” added Nancy Gordon, Senior Vice President, Chief Marketing Officer, ThankYou Network, Citigroup’s Global Consumer Group. “ThankYou Network is always looking for ways to bring value to our members, giving them new and exciting accelerated point-earning opportunities, and rewarding them for what they’re already doing.”

ThankYou Members can earn rewards quickly because Expedia.com enables travelers to earn ThankYou Points when booking a hotel, air/hotel package, cruise or activity on Expedia.com. ThankYou Members can get even more points if they use an eligible Citi credit card or Citibank® debit card to book their travel. In addition, ThankYou Network offers members accelerated earnings opportunities – 1 to 10 points for every dollar spent – every time they shop online with hundreds of leading retailers, e-tailers and cataloguers at www.ThankYouNetwork.com.

ThankYou Network provides members tremendous choice in redeeming their points for rewards, with thousands of options from the world’s most respected brands, with options starting as low as 1,000 points. With the new Expedia-powered online travel booking tool, ThankYou Network provides even more flexibility for redeeming travel rewards. ThankYou Members can travel when they want, how they want, and on an airline they want. When it comes to air travel, ThankYou Network’s travel booking tool eliminates limitations such as blackout dates, minimum point requirements, advance purchase rules and limited seat availability or airline choices. Members simply go to www.ThankYouNetwork.com to redeem points for flights, hotels and vacation packages quickly and easily.


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Expedia.com
Expedia.com® is the world’s leading online travel provider, helping more than 25 million travelers per month easily plan and book travel. Expedia.com (http://www.expedia.com/) aims to provide personalized service, the latest technology and the widest selection of vacation packages, flights, hotels, rental cars, cruises and in-destination activities, attractions, and services. With the Expedia® Best Price Guarantee, Expedia.com promises to offer to its travelers the best rates available online for all types of travel, making it the most comprehensive guarantee in online travel. Expedia is dedicated to positively impacting global tourism by providing travelers environmentally conscious travel options. Expedia is a founding member of the World Heritage Alliance – a joint initiative with the United Nations Foundation to promote sustainable tourism. Expedia.com is an operating brand of Expedia, Inc. (NASDAQ: EXPE).

Citigroup
Citigroup, the leading global financial services company, has some 200 million customer accounts and does business in more than 100 countries, providing consumers, corporations, governments and institutions with a broad range of financial products and services, including consumer banking and credit, corporate and investment banking, securities brokerage, and wealth management. Major brand names under Citigroup’s trademark red umbrella include Citibank, Citi Cards, ThankYou Network, CitiFinancial, Primerica, Smith Barney and Banamex. Additional information may be found at www.citigroup.com

ThankYou Network
Founded by Citigroup, the ThankYou Network is a free rewards program that lets members earn points from a growing network of places and pool these points into one ThankYou Member Account. Members get points for using eligible Citi credit cards, banking at Citibank with an eligible checking account and booking eligible travel on Expedia.com. Members can reward themselves with almost anything – from travel, brand-name goods, and gift cards at favorite stores, to unique experiences and charitable donations at www.ThankYouNetwork.com.



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