Expedia to give TripAdvisor chance to set its own itinerary

TripAdvisor reviews of hotels such as the Cleopatra Mare Nostrum in Tenerife attract millions of hits and the reviews are valuable for holidaymakers

The world's largest online travel company, Expedia, has unveiled plans to spin off its TripAdvisor brand.

The group yesterday said it hoped to split into two public companies - Expedia and TripAdvisor - by the third quarter of this year.

TripAdvisor will include 18 popular brands, such as Booking Buddy, in addition to its flagship site, while Expedia, set up by Microsoft in 1996 and later spun off, will continue to hold brands such as Expedia.com and Hotels.com.

TripAdvisor allows travellers to post reviews and attracts more than 40 million visitors a month across 29 countries.

Expedia, which trades on the New York Stock Exchange, has about 8,900 staff worldwide and includes brands such as Chinese subsidiary eLong and Cruise Ship Centers.

The separation is expected to take the form of a spin-off of TripAdvisor stock to Expedia shareholders or a reclassification of Expedia stock with holders receiving a proportionate amount of TripAdvisor stock.