NORWALK, Conn., Dec. 6, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- In a recent J.D. Power and Associates consumer satisfaction study of travel websites, the Priceline Group's (Nasdaq: PCLN) Booking.com hotel reservation service ranked #1 and priceline.com ranked #3. 

J.D. Power and Associates' 2012 Independent Travel Website Satisfaction Report was based on responses from 2,009 consumers who made an online purchase from an independent travel website in the past 12 months.  The report found that pricing had a significant effect on driving consumer satisfaction.  "While other factors certainly affect overall satisfaction, 75 percent of online travel website consumers indicate price as a primary purchase reason, so there is no denying price greatly impacts the overall website experience," said Sara Wong Hilton, director at J.D. Power and Associates.  The report also noted that Booking.com performed particularly well in availability of booking/reservation options, ease of booking/reserving, and pricing.

"We hope this recognition by J.D. Power encourages more American bookers to discover the unique formula and consumer focus that have made us the most popular accommodation booking website in the world," said Darren Huston, Chief Executive Officer of Booking.com.

"Priceline.com has long been committed to delivering the deepest savings on everything from hotel rooms to rental cars, airline tickets, vacation packages and even cruises, and we're pleased with this recognition," said Christopher L. Soder, Chief Executive Officer, priceline.com North America.  "In addition to price, we believe that our customers benefit from a broad and deep range of itinerary choices, a variety of booking options that now includes our no-bid Express Deals(sm) hotel service, and our mobile app - Priceline: Hotels, Flights & Rental Cars – that lets consumers with iOS, Android and other devices save money even when they're on the road."

About The Priceline Group
The Priceline Group (Nasdaq: PCLN) is a leader in global online hotel reservations, with over 270,000 participating hotels worldwide. The Group is composed of four primary brands - Booking.com, priceline.com, Agoda.com and Rentalcars.com - and several ancillary brands. The Priceline Group provides online travel services in over 180 countries in Europe, North America, South America, the Asia-Pacific region, the Middle East and Africa.

Booking.com is the world's leading online hotel and accommodation reservation company, and guarantees the best prices for any type of property – from small independents to five-star luxury. Guests can access the Booking.com website anytime, anywhere from their desktop, mobile phone or tablet device, and they never pay booking fees – ever. The Booking.com website is available in 41 languages, offers over 250,000 hotels in 178 countries (as of December 4, 2012), features over 17.5 million real reviews from real guests, and attracts over 30 million unique online visitors per month from both leisure and business markets around the globe. With over 15 years of experience and a team of over 4,400 dedicated employees in more than 85 offices worldwide, Booking.com operates its own in-house customer service team available 24/7 to assist guests in their native language and ensure an exceptional customer experience.  Established in 1996, Booking.com B.V. owns and operates Booking.com™, and is part of the Priceline Group (NASDAQ: PCLN). Follow us on Twitter, like us on Facebook, or learn more at http://www.booking.com.

Priceline.com gives leisure travelers multiple ways to save on their airline tickets, hotel rooms, rental cars, vacation packages and cruises. In addition to finding compelling published prices, travelers can take advantage of priceline.com's famous Name Your Own Price® service, which can deliver the lowest prices available (up to 60% savings on hotels and up to 40% savings on flights and rental cars) or the recently added Express Deals(SM), where travelers can take advantage of hotel discounts of up to 45% without bidding.  All published price Air, Hotel, and Rental Car bookings are backed by priceline.com's Best Price Guarantee. Find a lower online price for the exact same product and itinerary within 24 hours and, if the price qualifies, priceline.com will refund 100% of the difference.  All Name Your Own Price®, Express Deals(SM) and Vacation Package bookings are covered by priceline.com's Big Deal Guarantee. Find a lower online price for the same exact product and itinerary, and priceline.com will match that price, plus an additional $25.  Priceline.com also offers a free mobile app, Priceline: Hotels, Flights & Rental Cars, for iPhone, iPod touch, iPad, iPad mini and Android, and has a dedicated mobile site m.priceline.com. Priceline.com's app can be downloaded for free from iTunes http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/priceline-hotel-car-negotiator/id336381998?mt=8&uo=4, or from the Android Market https://market.android.com/details?id=com.priceline.android.negotiator.

Agoda.com is an Asia-based online hotel reservation service that is available in 38 languages. Rentalcars.com is a multinational car hire service, offering its reservation services in over 6,000 locations. Customer support is provided in 40 languages.

iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch and iTunes are trademarks of Apple, Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries. Android is a registered trademark of Google, Inc.

SOURCE Priceline.com