Choice Hotels Finally Agrees to List Properties on Expedia

(MoneyWatch)  After a public falling out, Choice Hotels International Inc. -- which includes Comfort Suites, Econo Lodge, Rodeway Inn and Cambria Suites -- signed a three-year deal to list its hotels on Expedia.com. This comes after Expedia declined to list the hotels on its site after negotiations broke down in October over last-room availability. (Last-room availability refers to hotel owners, most of them franchisees, relinquishing pricing and inventory to the online travel agency.)

Choice Hotels, which claimed Expedia wanted to act as the chain's revenue manager by controlling pricing and availability, declined Expedia's offer. However, it's unknown how much changed from the original deal to the one most recently signed. In any case, Choice Hotels reported last week that it expected revenue per available room to dwindle further in the fourth quarter. That report was followed yesterday by Choice Hotels announcing that it opened 35 hotels in October.

So, did the prospect of losing more money push Choice Hotels into the agreement? Or did three weeks of waiting get the company a slightly better deal and control over last-room availability? So far, neither company is telling. I guess we'll have to wait for those answers, but until then, Choice Hotels will be included hotel searches on Expedia.com.