priceline.com

[Perfectlap]

had a bad experience with priceline.com a long time ago after paying for a cheap flight that turned into a 15 hour nightmare. I recently tried it again but this time to book hotel and car rentals, no flights. I would usually use expedia but decided the rates being offered by expedia were too high. Well I ended getting a suite in Charlotte's Renaissance (part of Marriott) for $50 a night for five nights. I think the only thing at that price on expedia was a motel 6. I then booked a subcompact car in Orlando for $10 a day when the lowest price on expedia was $30.
So yeah give it a try.

[bmussatti]

PL, about 6-7 years ago I used to purchase gas on Priceline.com. It was awesome. It only lasted about a year till they got rid of it. Too bad.

[Chills]

I work for Orbitz.com... been here almost 5 years.

Its nice to get a cheap rate from Priceline, but when things go badly with a flight or hotel its nice to have the customer service of a better company helping you out.

[Dr. Kill]

The company is endorsed by Captain Kirk. What could go wrong?

[Perfectlap]

yeah those were the days, remember priceline for you groceries?

Orbitz, travelocity, expedia they all seem to offer nearly identical pricing.
I'm guessing they all have very similar offers from the hotels and rental car companies.
priceline seems to have a different buisness model, must be a patent issue if there's only one company negotiating prices on their site. It's saved me a ton.
I was reading how William Shatner never sold his priceline stock and its come back big since it tanked 7 years ago. Captain Kirk is a millionaire all over again.

[Sain0rs]

I actually have a little personal connection to priceline. Basically priceline was the result of a patent thinktank called Walker Digital out of Stamford, CT. The owner of the thinktank and founder of Priceline is Jay Walker. In addition to priceline there's been some other companies like Synapse and the grocery/gas priceline tie-in called Priceline Webhouse. I think just recently Walker Digital made a boatload of money off some casino patents. After the dot-com burst Jay got of priceline all together and it's now run by a Japanese company out of Norwalk, CT.

I currently work for the former Senior VP of marketing from Priceline on a new startup that involves vending machines. From a marketing standpoint, the vending machine offers two drinks, two snacks, or a drink and a snack for $1 (or 1 item for $0.75). The idea is that people will buy more frequently so it's the smaller profit margin but greater sales volume model. In addition to that, the machines are relatively advanced compared to standard vending machines. Basically, it's a snack and soda vending machine hooked together with a PC inside that manages all transactions. There's a touchscreen for the interface, a credit card reader, and a thumbprint reader on the front that you can use to access your account at any of our other vending machines. And to top it off, there's a game that plays after your transaction where you can win prizes like free snacks, cash or other things like laptops. I think it's a pretty cool idea and a fun thing to work on. For reference, http://www.Quickstore24.com

Sorry to be so long-winded and I'm definitely not trying to advertise or anything like that. I just wanted to contribute a slightly personal angle on the company. It is cool working with some of the people that helped start priceline. Lots of great stories and memorabilia around the office. Here's a picture from the annual Christmas party at Jay's house a few years ago from inside his 3-story library:
http://gifpaste.net/dimages/1417.104_0480.JPG

:cheers:

[cvhs18472]

Mr. Bruce, Mr. Bruce, they're being bad and not talking about Porsches.

[Perfectlap]

that's what the Porsche Lounge is for :cheers:

p.s.
Didn't J. Walker have a boat load of legal actions and ethics violations against him? Wasn't that the reason he had to leave Priceline? the shareholders weren't going to allow him to stay.

[Sain0rs]

I wouldn't doubt it. I don't hear much about him these days. Walker Digital moved out of our building to another one across the street so I don't really see those guys much anymore. He has a nice SL65 and S65 though :D