LodgeNet to Buy Rival Hotel VOD Firm On Command for $380 Million

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on December 14, 2006 - 7:04am.

Sioux Falls, S.D. - LodgeNet, a provider of broadband and in-room interactive entertainment to hotels, announced on Thursday that it has signed an agreement to acquire rival On Command for $380 million.

South Dakota-based LodgeNet will purchase On Command from Liberty Media, which following the transaction will own 9.9% of LodgeNet. The company also announced that shareholder PAR Capital Management has made an additional strategic investment of $23 million in LodgeNet to support the acquisition.

LodgeNet provides broadband access, as well as in-room interactive entertainment services like video-on-demand, shopping and video games in more than one million hotel rooms. Denver-based On Command serves 830,000 hotel rooms in the U.S., Canada and Mexico, and also owns 80% of The Hotel Networks, a provider of ad-supported satellite TV in 300,000 U.S. hotel rooms.

"This is another significant step forward in the execution of our strategy to expand our networks and integrate a broader range of solutions for our customers," said LodgeNet president and CEO Scott C. Petersen. "They offer an ideal fit with our organization and should provide numerous synergies while improving our ability to generate greater value for our hotel customers and their guests."