MICROSOFT’S on-line travel agency Expedia is planning to separate from its parent company and float on the US Stock Exchange.
The company has filed an initial public offering because it wants to operate independently of Microsoft in order to acquire funding and partnerships from companies that Microsoft would not previously have allowed.
Expedia UK manager James Vaile said: “This will give us a better strategic focus because it gives us independence and allows us not to be restricted about who we do business with. Previously, if we wanted to expand in a certain direction we would not have been able to do so if it meant a partnership with one of Microsoft’s rivals.”