Booking.com nearly sold itself to Expedia, and then Expedia’s owner said no.
In 2002 Expedia’s lawyers spent weeks in the Bookings.nl office, and then an email came that its founder, Geert-Jan Bruinsma, remembers as “Oh, sorry guys. The board decided not to do it.” Priceline bought the company three years later for $133 million, and in 2018 renamed itself Booking Holdings.
Booking.com on Brandseum