Hotels.com Inks Deal With Comcast Spotlight and Liquidus for Nationwide Video-On-Demand Promotion

CHICAGO, IL–(Marketwire – December 7, 2010) – Comcast Spotlight and Liquidus, the only company that can create and deliver dynamic video advertisements across web, Rich Media, mobile and cable video on-demand, today announced that Hotels.com® has signed an agreement to “Hotel Deals on Demand,” a video-on-demand advertising program distributed through the Comcast network and produced by Liquidus’ video on demand (VOD) technology. The deal is the first of its kind to leverage telescoping technology that enables consumers to view a traditional television commercial and then click their remote to take them directly into rich on-demand content to learn more about travel destination deals. 

The Hotel Deals On Demand program was trialed for six months over the Spring and Summer with great success. While traditional commercials are suffering due to the increased use of DVRs and other technologies that enable viewers to skip commercials, Hotels.com found that viewers spent more time engaged with their ads on demand than ever before. During the trial Comcast Video On Demand customers watched Hotel Deals On Demand for an average of 2.8 minutes per movie, indicating strong consumer engagement with the hotels.com brand through VOD. 

“Liquidus has proven to be a valuable partner for us as we break new ground in the area of digital content delivery,” said Vic Walla, Senior Director NA Brand Marketing, Hotels.com. “As a market leader, we are always searching for like-minded partners who are willing to experiment, be innovative and explore new ways to tackle business issues, and we are glad to have found that partner in the team at Liquidus.”

The new and extended program will be offered in millions of Comcast VOD-enabled homes nationwide, and will feature hotels in 20 major destination cities. Destination cities include: Chicago, Los Angeles, Los Vegas, Miami, New Orleans, New York City, Orlando, San Diego, San Francisco, Washington D.C. and more. Each destination video features up to 15-second hotel segments that run back-to-back and include a video tour of each hotel. 

“When customers can relax in front of their TV and literally tour a prospective hotel property on a large screen, rather than either flipping through tour books or viewing photo stills online, consumer engagement and interest is increased dramatically,” said Todd Holmes, CEO of Liquidus. “Video On Demand presents an incredibly effective way to merchandise properties and is a powerful new opportunity for travel marketing.”

The telescoping technology is embedded into traditional commercials and allows viewers to “click through” using their television remote to access more information. Upon activation consumers “telescope” from the traditional 30-second commercials directly into the Hotel Deals On Demand content. Hotel Deals On Demand will also be promoted through iGuide advertisements that scroll on the bottom of the Comcast programming guide. These ads also telescope directly into the Hotel Deals On Demand program.

Liquidus’ proprietary on demand technology produces promotional video from existing still images and data. Advertisers do not need to invest in costly video production, and as a result, they can quickly and inexpensively offer video for entire property lines on a turn-key basis. Working with Comcast and other cable operators, advertisers can easily pick and choose the markets they want to target.

“The hospitality industry is poised to benefit handsomely thanks to the new video capabilities available through on demand television,” said Kevin Smith, Group Vice President, Integrated Media Sales at Comcast Spotlight. “Savvy advertisers like Hotels.com are seeing the opportunity that new interactive TV capabilities offer. They’re launching programs that deliver sales today, while looking forward to the interactive capabilities they can offer consumers in the near future to further interact with their brands, such as requesting information or transacting through the TV with a click of the remote.”

About Liquidus

Liquidus has revolutionized the way companies are advertising on web, mobile and Video On Demand TV. Through a proprietary platform, Liquidus works with clients to create large volumes of video advertisements using existing static collateral. The result is high production quality, affordable interactive video advertisements for multiple media outlets that capture consumer’s attention.

About Hotels.com
Hotels.com® is a leading provider of hotel rooms worldwide, offering more than 85,000 properties in over 60 countries from national chain hotels and all-inclusive resorts to local favorites and bed & breakfasts. Hotels.com is the smarter way to book travel by offering welcomerewards®, an industry leading loyalty rewards program; the real opinions of other travelers captured in over 1.5 million Guest Reviews and; a Price Match Guarantee, so that those booking with Hotels.com can be assured they are getting the best deal, either online or by speaking directly to a travel expert at 1-800-2-HOTELS 24 hours a day. For more information, please visit hotels.com. Hotels.com is an operating company of Expedia, Inc.

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