BELLEVUE, Washington and DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, August 5 /PRNewswire/ --

- Deal marks first for Jumeirah Group with an online travel company

Expedia, Inc. (Nasdaq: EXPE), the world's leading online travel company, today announced it has signed a long term global agreement with Dubai-based Jumeirah Group, the dynamic, luxury hospitality management company. Under the agreement, Jumeirah hotels will be available on all Expedia(R) -- and hotels.com(R) -- branded points of sale globally.

"We have ambitious expansion plans to grow our global portfolio of luxury hotels and resorts with new projects underway in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Aqaba, Doha, Phuket, Shanghai, Mallorca, London, Argentina and elsewhere around the world," said Apo Demirtas, chief sales and marketing officer, Jumeirah Group. "Expedia is an ideal partner to help us reach millions of travelers worldwide and enhance our global distribution strategy."

The agreement provides Jumeirah Group access to Expedia's global marketplace, as well as its online travel marketing and distribution expertise, and targeted merchandising opportunities to reach travelers throughout Europe, Asia and North America.

"This partnership is strategic to both Jumeirah and Expedia, as we continue to expand our global footprints, respectively," said Murad Hajeebhoy, vice president of market management, Expedia EMEA. "Jumeirah and Expedia share a commitment to delivering travelers excellent service, and we're pleased to help Jumeirah meet its overall business objectives."

Jumeirah hotels will access Expedia's global online travel marketplace through Expedia(R)Connect, Expedia's industry leading direct connection solution for chain hotels. In turn, Expedia customers can book accommodation at Jumeirah Group's luxurious hotels and resorts worldwide, including the well-known Jumeirah Essex House in New York, and the world's most luxurious hotel Burj Al Arab in Dubai.

About Expedia, Inc.

Expedia, Inc. is the world's leading online travel company, empowering business and leisure travelers with the tools and information they need to easily research, plan, book and experience travel. Expedia, Inc. also provides in-destination concierge service and activity desks for travelers. The Expedia, Inc. portfolio of brands includes: Expedia.com(R), hotels.com(R), Hotwire(R), Egencia(TM) (formerly Expedia Corporate Travel), TripAdvisor(R), Expedia Local Expert(TM), Classic Vacations(R) and eLong(TM). Expedia, Inc.'s companies operate more than 60 global points of sale in more than 40 countries, with sites in North America, South America, Latin America, Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia Pacific. Expedia, Inc. is a component of the S&P 500 index. For more information, visit http://www.expediainc.com (NASDAQ: EXPE).

About Expedia(R) Partner Services Group

Expedia(R) Partner Services Group (PSG) is the central point of contact for travel suppliers to access the global Expedia marketplace of leading travel brands comprising more than 50 points of sale worldwide. With hundreds of employees in local markets throughout the world, Expedia(R) PSG makes it easy for suppliers to meet their global distribution objectives, and delivers a portfolio of innovative connectivity solutions, rate and inventory management tools, business intelligence reports, and online marketing expertise.

About Jumeirah Group

Jumeirah properties are regarded as among the most luxurious and innovative in the world and have won numerous international travel and tourism awards. The fast growing Dubai based luxury international hospitality management group encompasses the world renowned Burj Al Arab, the world's most luxurious hotel, the multi-award winning Jumeirah Beach Hotel, Jumeirah Emirates Towers, Madinat Jumeirah and Jumeirah Bab Al Shams Desert Resort & Spa in Dubai, the Jumeirah Carlton Tower and Jumeirah Lowndes Hotel in London and the Jumeirah Essex House on Central Park South in New York.

Building on this success, Jumeirah Group became a member of Dubai Holding in 2004, a collection of leading Dubai based businesses and projects, in a step that aims to initiate a new phase of growth and development for the group.

Expedia, Expedia.com, Expedia Corporate Travel and Egencia are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Expedia, Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries. Other logos or product and company names mentioned herein may be the property of their respective owners.

(C) 2008 Expedia, Inc. All rights reserved. CST: 2029030-40

Web site: http://www.expediainc.com

Katie Deines of Expedia, Inc., +1-425-679-4317, press@expedia.com