AMADEUS said it will acquire a 55% controlling stake of Opodo

TW Crossroads
AMADEUS said it will acquire a 55% controlling stake of Opodo [www.opodo.com], a Pan-European online agency, from the site's nine airline owners for 62 million euros, or some $75 million. Following completion of the purchase, Opodo's ownership structure will be Amadeus (55.4%), Air France (10.3%), British Airways (10.3%), Lufthansa, (10.3%), Alitalia (4.1%), Iberia (4.1%), KLM (4.1%), Finnair (0.8%), Aer Lingus (0.5%) and Austrian Airlines (0.5%). Amadeus has been a technology vendor for Opodo, and has held two seats on Opodo's board since April 2003. Amadeus also is a player in the U.S. online agency market, as the company owns a 39% stake in Onetravel.com.

WORLDSPAN TECHNOLOGIES' initial public offering will be 32.25 million shares of common stock for $19 to $21 per share, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission document filed last week. The IPO could raise as much as $677.25 million. Also, the IPO's underwriters have a 45-day option to purchase up to 4.8 million additional shares to cover any over-allotments. Worldspan intends to use the net proceeds of the IPO to pay down debt, prepay credits owed to Northwest and Delta, and redeem outstanding shares of preferred stock. In an SEC document filed in March, Worldspan said it expected to raise $438.1 million in an IPO. Last year, Worldspan was acquired by the Ontario Teachers' Pension Fund and Citigroup Venture Capital Equity Partners from Delta, Northwest and American.