EDGAR 10-K Filing

Company CIK: 1606745
Filing Year: 2024
Filename: 1606745_10-K_2024_0001558370-24-001313.json

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ITEM 1. BUSINESS
Item 1. Business.
General Development of Business
Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings, Inc. (“TripCo” or the “Company”) was formed in 2013 as a Delaware corporation. TripCo was a subsidiary of Liberty Interactive Corporation (subsequently renamed Qurate Retail, Inc. (“Qurate Retail”)) until the completion of its spin-off from Qurate Retail on August 27, 2014 (“TripCo Spin-Off”). Following the TripCo Spin-Off, Qurate Retail and TripCo operate as separate, publicly traded companies, and neither has any stock ownership, beneficial or otherwise, in the other. TripCo does not have any operations outside of its controlling interest in its subsidiary, Tripadvisor, Inc. (“Tripadvisor”). As of December 31, 2023, TripCo held an approximate 21% economic interest and 57% voting interest in Tripadvisor.
In connection with the TripCo Spin-Off, TripCo entered into certain agreements, including the services agreement, the facilities sharing agreement and the tax sharing agreement, with Qurate Retail and/or Liberty Media Corporation (“Liberty Media”) (or certain of their subsidiaries) in order to govern certain of the ongoing relationships between the companies after the TripCo Spin-Off and to provide for an orderly transition.
Pursuant to the services agreement (except as described below in respect to Gregory B. Maffei), Liberty Media provides TripCo with general and administrative services including legal, tax, accounting, treasury, information technology (“IT”), cybersecurity, and investor relations support. TripCo reimburses Liberty Media for direct, out-of-pocket expenses incurred by Liberty Media in providing these services and TripCo pays a services fee to Liberty Media under the services agreement that is subject to adjustment semi-annually, as necessary.
Pursuant to the services agreement, in connection with Liberty Media’s employment arrangement with Gregory B. Maffei, TripCo’s Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, components of Mr. Maffei’s compensation are either paid directly to him or reimbursed to Liberty Media, based on allocations set forth in the services agreement. For each of the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021, the allocation percentage for TripCo was 5%, but is subject to adjustment on an annual basis and upon the occurrence of certain events.
Under the facilities sharing agreement, TripCo shares office space with Liberty Media and related amenities at Liberty Media’s corporate headquarters in Englewood, Colorado.
On March 15, 2020, TripCo and Gregory B. Maffei entered into an Investment Agreement (the “Investment Agreement”) with Certares Holdings LLC, Certares Holdings (Blockable) LLC and Certares Holdings (Optional) LLC with respect to an investment in TripCo’s newly-created 8% Series A Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Stock, par value $0.01 per share (the “Series A Preferred Stock”) which was later assigned to Certares LTRIP LLC (“Certares” or the “Purchaser”). Pursuant to the assigned Investment Agreement, on March 26, 2020, TripCo issued 325,000 shares of Series A Preferred Stock to Certares for a purchase price of $1,000 per share. On March 29, 2021 and April 6, 2021, TripCo repurchased a portion of the Series A Preferred Stock. See further discussion about the Series A Preferred Stock in note 8 to the accompanying consolidated financial statements.
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Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this Annual Report on Form 10-K constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including statements regarding our business, product and marketing strategies; the direct and indirect impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic; improvements in global travel, related spending and revenue; cost reduction measures and related impacts; new product and service offerings; the recoverability of our goodwill and other long-lived assets; covenant compliance; our projected sources and uses of cash; consumer demand; anticipated debt obligations; fluctuations in interest rates and foreign exchange rates; and the anticipated impact of certain contingent liabilities related to tax rules and other matters arising in the ordinary course of business. In particular, statements under Item 1. "Business," Item 1A. "Risk Factors," Item 2. "Properties," Item 7. "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" and Item 7A. "Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk" contain forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements inherently involve many risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in these statements. Where, in any forward-looking statement, we express an expectation or belief as to future results or events, such expectation or belief is expressed in good faith and believed to have a reasonable basis, but such statements necessarily involve risks and uncertainties and there can be no assurance that the expectation or belief will result or be achieved or accomplished. The following include some but not all of the factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from those anticipated:
● our ability to obtain cash in amounts sufficient to service our financial obligations and other commitments due to the fact we are a holding company;
● our ability to access the cash that Tripadvisor generates from its operating activities;
● the ability of our Company and Tripadvisor to obtain additional financing, or refinance our existing indebtedness, on acceptable terms;
● the existence of our Series A Preferred Stock and its rights, preferences and privileges that are not held by, and are preferential to, the rights of our common stockholders;
● our ability to realize the full value of our intangible assets;
● weak economic conditions or declines or interruptions in the worldwide travel industry, including health concerns (including COVID-19 or other pandemics or epidemics), natural disasters, cyber-attacks, technology system failures, regional hostilities, wars, terrorist attacks, civil or political unrest or other events outside Tripadvisor’s control;
● Tripadvisor’s ability to attract a significant number of visitors and cost-effectively convert these visitors into revenue-generating consumers;
● failure of internet search engines and application marketplaces to continue to prominently display links to Tripadvisor’s websites;
● Tripadvisor’s performance marketing efficiency and the general effectiveness of its advertising and marketing efforts;
● reduction in spending by advertisers on Tripadvisor’s platforms or the loss of Tripadvisor’s significant travel partners;
● Tripadvisor’s failure to maintain, protect or enhance its brands;
● Tripadvisor’s strategy may be unsuccessful, may expose it to additional risks, or may not achieve its expected benefits;
● declines or disruptions in the economy in general and in the travel industry in particular;
● failure of Tripadvisor to effectively compete in the global environment in which it operates;
● Tripadvisor’s failure to adapt to technological developments or industry trends, including artificial intelligence;
● the ability of Tripadvisor to innovate and provide products, services and features that are useful to consumers;
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● Tripadvisor’s potential for prioritizing rapid innovation and consumer experience over short-term financial results;
● the ability of Tripadvisor to maintain a quality of traffic in its network to provide value to its travel partners;
● real or perceived inaccuracies of the assumptions and estimates and data Tripadvisor relies on to calculate certain of its key metrics;
● the ability of Tripadvisor to hire, retain and engage the highly skilled work force on which it relies;
● risks associated with the composition of Tripadvisor’s work force and Tripadvisor’s ability to manage those risks;
● disruptions resulting from any acquisitions, investments, significant commercial arrangements and/or new business strategies;
● risks due to Tripadvisor operating in many jurisdictions inside and outside the U.S.;
● claims, lawsuits, government investigations and other proceedings to which Tripadvisor is regularly subject;
● the ability of Tripadvisor to protect its intellectual property from copying or use by others;
● the impact of green house gas emissions on global climate change and its expected impacts on travel, including the world’s transportation infrastructure and tourist destinations;
● risks associated with environmental, social, and governance (“ESG”) responsibilities;
● risks due to Tripadvisor’s processing, storage and use of personal information and other data;
● risks associated with the facilitation of payments from consumers, including fraud and compliance with evolving rules and regulations and reliance on third parties;
● risks resulting from system security issues, data protection breaches, cyberattacks and system outage issues;
● risks associated with evolving regulations, guidance and practices on the use of “cookies” and similar tracking technologies;
● Tripadvisor’s indebtedness and the resulting impacts on its business and financial condition;
● limitations imposed by the various covenants in Tripadvisor’s credit facilities and indenture;
● risks related to the 2026 Convertible Senior Notes and Capped Calls (each as defined herein);
● Tripadvisor’s ability to meet its publicly announced guidance or other expectations about its business and future operating results;
● fluctuation of Tripadvisor’s financial results;
● factors that determine Tripadvisor’s effective income tax rate;
● changes in tax laws that affect Tripadvisor or the examination of Tripadvisor’s tax positions;
● changes in the tax treatment of companies engaged in e-commerce;
● challenges by tax authorities in the jurisdictions where Tripadvisor operates;
● fluctuation in foreign currency exchange rates which affect Tripadvisor; and
● risks associated with our stock price being disproportionately affected by the results of operations of Tripadvisor and developments in its business.
These forward-looking statements and such risks, uncertainties and other factors speak only as of the date of this Annual Report, and we expressly disclaim any obligation or undertaking to disseminate any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statement contained herein, to reflect any change in our expectations with regard thereto, or any other change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based. When considering such forward-looking statements, you should keep in mind the factors described in Item 1A, "Risk Factors" and other cautionary statements contained in this Annual Report. Such risk factors and statements describe circumstances which could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement.
This Annual Report includes information concerning Tripadvisor, a public company in which we have a controlling interest that files reports and other information with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) in accordance with the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”). Information in this Annual Report concerning Tripadvisor has been derived from the reports and other information filed by Tripadvisor with the SEC. If you would like further information about Tripadvisor, the reports and other information it files with the SEC can be
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accessed on the Internet website maintained by the SEC at www.sec.gov. Those reports and other information are not incorporated by reference in this Annual Report.
Description of Business
Tripadvisor
Tripadvisor operates as a family of brands with the purpose of connecting people to experiences worth sharing. Tripadvisor’s vision is to be the world’s most trusted source for travel and experiences. Tripadvisor operates across three business segments: Brand Tripadvisor (formerly Tripadvisor Core), Viator, and TheFork. Tripadvisor leverages its brands, technology platforms and capabilities to connect its large, global audience with partners by offering rich content, travel guidance products and services, and two-sided marketplaces for experiences, accommodations, restaurants, and other travel categories.
Brand Tripadvisor’s purpose is to empower everyone to be a better traveler by serving as the world’s most trusted and essential travel guidance platform. Since Tripadvisor’s founding in 2000, the Tripadvisor brand has developed a relationship of trust and community with travelers and experience seekers by providing an online global platform for travelers to discover, generate, and share authentic user-generated content in the form of ratings and reviews for destinations, points-of-interest, experiences, accommodations, restaurants, and cruises in over 40 countries and in more than 20 languages across the world. Tripadvisor offers more than 1 billion user-generated ratings and reviews on over 8 million experiences, accommodations, restaurants, airlines, and cruises. Tripadvisor’s online platform attracts one of the world’s largest travel audiences, with hundreds of millions of visitors annually.
Viator’s purpose is to bring extraordinary, unexpected, and forever memorable experiences to more people, more often, wherever they are traveling. In doing so, Viator elevates tens of thousands of businesses, large and small. Viator delivers on its purpose by enabling travelers to discover and book iconic, unique and memorable experiences from experience operators around the globe. Viator’s online marketplace is comprehensive and easy-to-use, connecting millions of travelers to the world’s largest supply of bookable tours, activities and attractions-over 350,000 experiences from more than 55,000 operators. Viator is a pure-play experiences online travel agency (“OTA”) singularly focused on the needs of both travelers and operators with the largest supply of bookable experiences available to travelers.
TheFork’s purpose is to deliver happiness through amazing dining experiences. TheFork delivers on its purpose by providing an online marketplace that enables diners to discover and book online reservations at approximately 55,000 restaurants in 11 countries across the U.K., and western and central Europe. TheFork has become an urban, gastronomic guide with a strong community that offers approximately 20 million restaurant reviews.
The COVID-19 pandemic had a significant negative impact on the travel and hospitality industries (collectively, the “travel industry”) and consequently, adversely and materially affected Tripadvisor’s business, results of operations, liquidity and financial condition through the first quarter of 2022. Overall, in 2022, Tripadvisor generally experienced a travel demand recovery fueled by the continued easing of government restrictions globally and increasing consumer travel demand. During 2023, Tripadvisor continued to experience strong consumer demand for its offerings, particularly for its experiences offerings across the Viator and Brand Tripadvisor segments. Tripadvisor believes that consumers will continue to seek connection with others, discover new places, and experience new things through travel.
Tripadvisor’s Industry and Market Opportunity
Tripadvisor is one of the world’s largest online travel companies, and its consolidated annual revenue in 2023 represents a small fraction of total worldwide travel spending which highlights the potential size of its global market opportunity. Phocuswright, an independent travel, tourism and hospitality research firm, estimated global travel spending, exclusive of experiences, short-term vacation rentals, and dining, at approximately $1.6 trillion in 2020, prior to the onset of COVID-19. Phocuswright estimates global travel spending will reach approximately $1.7 trillion by 2026, with an expected increasing share booked through online channels each year.
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Tripadvisor believes that it is a compelling leader in the global experiences industry and well positioned to capture increased share in a large and growing market that is estimated to reach approximately $280 billion by 2025 according to Arival’s October 2022 report (the “Arival Report”), a leading research provider on the in-destination experiences industry. Moreover, Tripadvisor believes it is poised to benefit from increased online adoption in the global experiences industry. While online penetration in experiences remains nearly a third below other major travel categories, such as hotel accommodations, the anticipated total size of the online experiences market will continue to grow according to the Arival Report as travelers become increasingly aware of the category online and operators continue to shift their business online. In addition, OTAs are the fastest growing channel in the travel experiences market and are expected to undergo significant growth going forward, with the OTA channel expected to experience a compounded annual growth rate of 37% from 2022 to 2025 according to the Arival Report.
Based on information in Euromonitor’s February 2022 report, a leading provider of global business intelligence, market research data and analysis, Tripadvisor estimates the full-service European restaurant industry may reach approximately $250 billion by 2025. In addition, based on this same data, this industry is exhibiting a similar trend as the experiences industry in terms of online adoption; the majority of restaurant reservation bookings still take place offline, but an increasing share is booked through online channels each year. Tripadvisor believes that it is still early in the global shift in consumer adoption towards booking experiences and restaurants online, which provides an exciting future market opportunity for its business.
Business Models
The Brand Tripadvisor segment (formerly Tripadvisor Core segment) includes revenue generated from the following sources:
●Tripadvisor-branded Hotels Revenue. The largest source of Brand Tripadvisor segment revenue is generated from click-based advertising on Tripadvisor’s hotel meta platform (also referred to as hotel auction), which consists primarily of contextually-relevant booking links to partner websites, which predominantly include OTAs and hotels. Click-based advertising is generally priced on a cost-per-click (“CPC”) basis, with payments from partners determined by the number of clicks generated on a commerce link multiplied by the CPC rate for each particular click. CPC rates are determined in a dynamic, competitive auction bidding process. Tripadvisor also generates click-based advertising revenue on a cost-per-acquisition basis, with payments from partners determined by a contractual commission rate based on a traveler click generated on its platform that ultimately results in a hotel booking and stay via the partners’ websites.
Tripadvisor provides additional business-to-business (“B2B”) offerings to hotels and related accommodation partners that deliver other unique opportunities to further promote, advertise, and operate their businesses as well as merchandise their inventory on its platform. These include a subscription-based advertising solution, with revenue determined by a contractual fee and time duration, or other CPC-based advertising services through hotel sponsored placements on Tripadvisor’s platform.
●Media and Advertising Revenue. Tripadvisor offers endemic and non-endemic advertisers opportunities to promote their brands primarily through display-based advertising (or “media advertising”) placements across its brands on its platform. Tripadvisor’s advertising clients are predominantly direct suppliers of hotels, airlines and cruises, as well as destination marketing organizations, OTAs, and other travel related businesses. Display-based advertising placements are predominantly sold on a cost per thousand impressions, basis.
●Tripadvisor Experiences and Dining Revenue. Tripadvisor merchandises, on the Tripadvisor platform, bookable experiences available on Viator and bookable dining reservations available on TheFork and earns affiliate marketing commission revenue on bookings that are driven by its platform, which are fulfilled by Viator and TheFork, respectively. These transactions generate intercompany (intersegment)
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revenue which is eliminated on a consolidated basis. The nature and economics of these transactions are consistent with the Viator segment and TheFork segment, as described below.
Tripadvisor provides additional B2B offerings to restaurant partners that deliver other unique opportunities to further promote, advertise, and operate their businesses as well as merchandise their businesses on its platform. These offerings can be subscription-based, with revenue determined by a contractual fee and time duration, or CPC-based advertising services through restaurant sponsored placements on its platform.
●Other Revenue. Tripadvisor provides travelers additional offerings across various other travel categories, including alternative accommodations (e.g., short-term vacation rentals), cruises, flights, and rental cars. Tripadvisor provides these offerings across a collection of brands that complement and reinforce its segment strategy of providing differentiated guidance that helps travelers reduce friction and make better decisions. Tripadvisor’s alternative accommodation rentals platform is a two-way marketplace that connects travelers with owners and operators of short-term rental properties, generating commission revenue from both the traveler and the property owner for each booking it facilitates across its branded platforms. Tripadvisor’s cruise, flight, and rental cars offerings generate revenue primarily through click-based and display-based advertising opportunities.
The Viator segment offers travelers a comprehensive online marketplace that provides access to over 350,000 experiences and more than 55,000 experience operators. These experiences are instantly bookable online in over 200 countries. Tripadvisor’s business model relies on the success of travelers and operators who join its marketplace and generate consistent bookings over time. As experience operators become more successful on Tripadvisor’s platform and as travelers return over time, Tripadvisor benefits from the recurring activity on its marketplace. Tripadvisor generates revenue through commissions for each booking transaction it facilitates directly and indirectly through its platform. Through Viator, Tripadvisor also powers traveler experience bookings on behalf of third-party distribution partner websites, including the Tripadvisor platform as well as many of the world’s major OTAs, airlines, hotels, online and offline travel agencies, and other prominent content and eCommerce brands. For the majority of experience bookings, Tripadvisor collects the full amount charged to the traveler at the time of booking and remits the operator’s portion after the booked experience occurs. In addition, Viator offers a “Reserve Now, Pay Later” payment option, which allows Tripadvisor’s travelers the option to reserve certain experiences and defer payment until a date no later than two days before the experience date.
TheFork segment offers travelers and diners a comprehensive online marketplace that provides access to approximately 55,000 restaurants to discover and book reservations in 11 countries across the U.K., and western and central Europe. Tripadvisor primarily generates revenue for each booking reservation it facilitates on its platform, calculated on a per seated diner fee basis and paid for by the restaurant partner. Tripadvisor also generates revenue on a subscription basis from restaurant partners by providing, for a fee, access to premium online reservation booking software and related services offerings to help them more effectively and efficiently manage their business.
Commercial Relationships
Tripadvisor has commercial relationships with a majority of the world’s leading OTAs, as well as thousands of other travel partners, pursuant to which these companies primarily purchase traveler leads from Tripadvisor, generally on a click-based advertising basis. Although these relationships are memorialized in agreements, many of these agreements are for limited terms or are terminable at will or on short notice. As a result, Tripadvisor seeks to ensure the mutual success of these relationships.
For the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021, Tripadvisor’s two most significant travel partners were Expedia Group, Inc., and its subsidiaries (“Expedia”), and Booking Holdings Inc., and its subsidiaries (“Booking Holdings”), each of which accounted for 10% or more of Tripadvisor’s consolidated revenue and together accounted for approximately 25%, 31% and 34% of its consolidated revenue, respectively, with nearly all of this concentration of revenue recorded in the Brand Tripadvisor segment during these reporting periods. Additionally, Tripadvisor’s business is dependent on relationships with third-party service operators that it relies on to fulfill service obligations to its customers
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where Tripadvisor is the merchant of record, such as Tripadvisor’s experience providers. However, no single operator’s inventory resulted in more than 10% of Tripadvisor’s revenue on a consolidated basis or at a reportable segment level in any period presented.
Operations and Technology
Tripadvisor has assembled a team of highly skilled software engineers, computer scientists, data scientists, network engineers and systems engineers whose expertise spans a broad range of technical areas, including a wide variety of open source operating systems, databases, languages, analytics, networking, scalable web architecture, operations and warehousing technologies. Tripadvisor makes significant investments in product and feature development, data management, personalization technologies, scalable infrastructures, networking, data warehousing, and search engine technologies.
Tripadvisor’s systems infrastructure for Tripadvisor-branded websites is in a "hybrid-cloud" configuration in which parts of it are housed at a colocation facility and managed by Tripadvisor’s operations team, while the rest is hosted on Amazon Web Services. Tripadvisor’s infrastructure installations have multiple communication links as well as continuous monitoring and engineering support. The co-location facility is protected with both network-level and application-level defenses, using well known commercial solutions tailored for such purposes. Tripadvisor makes use of Amazon Web Services availability zones to provide redundancy for the cloud portions of its infrastructure. Substantially all of Tripadvisor’s software components, data, and content are replicated in multiple data centers and development centers, as well as backed up at offsite locations. Tripadvisor’s systems are monitored and protected through multiple layers of security. Several of Tripadvisor’s individual subsidiaries and businesses have their own technology teams to support business growth while leveraging common assets, tools and processes for scale.
Intellectual Property
Tripadvisor’s intellectual property, including patents, trademarks, copyrights, domain names, trade dress, proprietary technology and trade secrets, is an important component of its business. Tripadvisor relies on its intellectual property rights in its content, proprietary technology, software code, ratings indexes, databases of reviews and forum content. Tripadvisor has acquired some of its intellectual property rights through licenses and content agreements with third parties and these arrangements may place restrictions on its use of the intellectual property.
Tripadvisor protects its intellectual property by relying on its terms of use, confidentiality agreements and contractual provisions, as well as on international, national, federal, state and common law rights. Tripadvisor protects its brands by pursuing the trademark registration of its core brands, as appropriate, maintaining its trademark portfolio, securing contractual trademark rights protection when appropriate, and relying on common law trademark rights when appropriate. Tripadvisor also registers copyrights and domain names as deemed appropriate. Additionally, Tripadvisor protects its trademarks, domain names and copyrights with the use of intellectual property licenses and an enforcement program.
Tripadvisor has considered, and will continue to consider, the appropriateness of filing for patents to protect future inventions, as circumstances may warrant. However, many patents protect only specific inventions and there can be no assurance that others may not create new products or methods that achieve similar results without infringing upon patents owned by Tripadvisor.
In connection with Tripadvisor’s copyrightable content, it posts and institutes procedures under the U.S. Digital Millennium Copyright Act and similar “host privilege” statutes worldwide to gain immunity from copyright liability for photographs, text and other content loaded on its platform by consumers. However, differences between statutes, limitations on immunity, political and regulatory efforts to amend relevant statutes, and moderation efforts in the many jurisdictions in which Tripadvisor operates may affect its ability to claim immunity.
From time to time, Tripadvisor may be subject to legal proceedings and claims in the ordinary course of its business, including claims of alleged infringement by Tripadvisor of the trademarks, copyrights, patents, and other intellectual property rights of third parties. In addition, litigation may be necessary in the future to enforce Tripadvisor’s
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intellectual property rights, protect its trade secrets or determine the validity and scope of proprietary rights claimed by others. Any such litigation, regardless of outcome or merit, could result in substantial costs and diversion of management and technical resources, any of which could materially harm Tripadvisor’s business.
Seasonality
Consumer travel expenditures have historically followed a seasonal pattern. Correspondingly, travel partner advertising investments and, therefore, Tripadvisor’s revenue and operating profits, have also historically followed a seasonal pattern. Tripadvisor’s financial performance tends to be seasonally highest in the second and third quarters of a given year, which includes the seasonal peak in consumer demand, including traveler accommodation stays, and travel experiences taken, compared to the first and fourth quarters, which represent seasonal low points. In addition, during the first half of the year, experience bookings typically exceed the amount of completed experiences, resulting in higher cash flow related to working capital, while during the second half of the year, particularly in the third quarter, this pattern reverses and cash flows from these transactions are typically negative. Other factors may also impact typical seasonal fluctuations, such as significant shifts in Tripadvisor’s business mix, adverse economic conditions, public health-related events, as well as other factors.
Terms of Investment in Tripadvisor
We own an approximate 21% economic interest and 57% voting interest in Tripadvisor as of December 31, 2023. Tripadvisor’s amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that the holders of Tripadvisor common stock, acting as a single class, are entitled to elect a number of directors equal to 25% of the total number of directors, rounded up to the next whole number, which is currently three directors. We consolidate Tripadvisor as we control a majority of the voting interest in Tripadvisor. We are subject to a Governance Agreement with Tripadvisor which provides us with certain director nomination, registration and other rights and imposes certain restrictions on our shares of Class B common stock.
Regulatory Matters
Tripadvisor is subject to a number of laws and regulations that affect companies conducting business on the Internet as well as some relating to the travel industry, the provision of travel services and the vacation rental industry. As Tripadvisor continues to expand the reach of its brands into additional international markets and expands its product offerings, it is increasingly subject to additional laws and regulations. This includes laws and regulations regarding privacy and data protection, libel and defamation, content, intellectual property, distribution, electronic contracts and other communications, consumer protection, taxation, online payment services and competition, among others. These laws and regulations are constantly evolving and can be subject to significant change. Many of these laws and regulations are being tested in courts, and could be interpreted by regulators and courts in ways that could harm Tripadvisor’s business. In addition, the application and interpretation of these laws and regulations is often uncertain, particularly in the new and rapidly-evolving industry in which Tripadvisor operates.
In addition, Tripadvisor provides advertising data and information and conducts marketing activities that are subject to consumer protection laws that regulate unfair and deceptive practices, domestically and internationally, including, in some countries, pricing display requirements, licensing and registration requirements and industry specific value-added tax regimes. The U.S. (as well as individual states), the European Union (the “E.U.”) (as well as member states) and other countries have adopted legislation that regulates certain aspects of the Internet, including online editorial and user-generated content, data privacy, behavioral targeting and online advertising, taxation, and liability for third-party activities.
It is difficult to accurately predict how such legislation will be interpreted and applied or whether new taxes or regulations will be imposed on Tripadvisor’s services, and whether or how Tripadvisor might be affected. Increased regulation of the Internet could increase the cost of doing business or otherwise materially adversely affect Tripadvisor’s business, financial condition or operating results.
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Tripadvisor is subject to laws that require protection of user privacy and user data. As Tripadvisor’s business has evolved, Tripadvisor has begun to receive and store a greater volume of personally identifiable data. This data is increasingly subject to laws and regulations in numerous jurisdictions around the world. For example, the E.U., in May 2018, adopted the General Data Protection Regulation, which requires companies, including Tripadvisor, to meet enhanced requirements regarding the handling and storage of personal data. In January 2020, the State of California adopted the Consumer Privacy Protection Act which also enhances privacy rights and consumer protection for residents of California. In addition, several other U.S. states, including Colorado, Connecticut, Utah and Virginia, have adopted similar laws or are currently evaluating their own laws and regulations. The enactment, interpretation and application of these laws is still in a state of flux.
Compliance with these laws, rules and regulations has not had, and is not expected to have, a material effect on Tripadvisor’s business, results of operations and financial condition. However, there are, and will likely continue to be, an increasing number of laws and regulations pertaining to the internet and online commerce and/or information retrieved from or transmitted over the internet, online editorial and user-generated content, user privacy, behavioral targeting and online advertising and liability for third-party activities. Likewise, the SEC, Department of Justice (“DOJ”) and Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”), as well as foreign regulatory authorities, have continued to increase the enforcement of economic sanctions and trade regulations, anti-money laundering, and anti-corruption laws, across industries. As regulations continue to evolve and regulatory oversight continues to increase, Tripadvisor cannot guarantee that its programs and policies will be deemed compliant by all applicable regulatory authorities.
Marketing
Tripadvisor has established world-renowned, widely used, and recognized brands through the innovative and efficient implementation of marketing and promotional campaigns. Particularly, Tripadvisor believes it has been successful with the strategic use of a number of cost effective online and offline marketing channels to reach travelers and diners, including its own platform channels (i.e., websites and apps), online search engines (primarily Google), social media, email, media via public relations, partnerships, and content distribution. Tripadvisor’s omni-channel marketing programs are intended to showcase the value of its industry-leading travel brands; increase user traffic; efficiently drive transactions and engagement; optimize ongoing traveler acquisition costs; and strategically position its brands in relation to one another as Tripadvisor continues to differentiate its offering versus those of its competitors. Tripadvisor’s sustained scale and profitability depend on its ability to effectively maintain its costs and increase the overall number of users engaged on its platforms and their subsequent transactions. Tripadvisor continues to focus on its ability to attract and engage new and repeat users and encourage users to directly visit its websites and apps. Tripadvisor has the ability to manage its marketing investments across its portfolio of brands to optimize its results. Tripadvisor’s relative flexibility enables it to make decisions on a brand-by-brand, market-by-market, travel segment and customer basis that it thinks are appropriate based on the relative growth opportunity, the expected returns and the competitive environment.
Competition
Tripadvisor operates in a very competitive set of market environments that constantly evolve and change. Some of Tripadvisor’s current and potential competitors, listed below, have significantly more customers, data, and financial and other resources than Tripadvisor does, and may be able to leverage those strengths to compete more aggressively with Tripadvisor.
Tripadvisor primarily competes, and in some cases partners, with the following businesses:
●General OTAs, such as Expedia, Booking Holdings, Airbnb, traveloka, Despegar, Trip.com and their respective subsidiaries and operating companies;
●Experiences OTAs, such as GetYourGuide, Klook, and TUI Musement;
●Hotel metasearch providers, such as trivago, Kayak and Skyscanner;
●Online search, social media, and marketplace platforms for advertising spend, such as Google, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Snap;
●Global and regional travel, experiences, and restaurant brands seeking to promote direct bookings;
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●Emerging online advertising businesses, such as ad-supported retail and entertainment platforms like Amazon, Spotify, and Walmart;
●Artificial intelligence driven travel curators;
●Traditional offline travel agencies; and
●Global and regional restaurant technology providers for reservation management and related services, such as OpenTable, Resy, and Tock.
Human Capital Resources
Employees
As described above, our Company is party to a services agreement with Liberty Media, pursuant to which 86 Liberty Media corporate employees provide certain management services to the Company for a determined fee. As a result, our Company is not responsible for the hiring, retention and compensation of these individuals (except that our Company does grant equity incentive awards to certain of these individuals). However, our Company directly benefits from the efforts undertaken by Liberty Media to attract and retain talented employees. Liberty Media strives to create a diverse, inclusive and supportive workplace, with opportunities for its employees to grow and develop in their careers, supported by competitive compensation, benefits and health and wellness programs, and by programs that build connections between its employees and their communities. Our Company fully supports these efforts.
As of December 31, 2023, Tripadvisor had approximately 2,845 employees. Approximately 58%, 34% and 8% are based in Europe, the U.S. and the rest of the world, respectively. Additionally, Tripadvisor uses independent contractors to supplement its workforce. Tripadvisor believes it has good relationships with its employees and contractors, including relationships with employees represented by international works councils or other similar organizations.
Talent Acquisition and Development
Tripadvisor believes its employees are essential to its success and that its success depends on its ability to attract, develop and retain key talent. The skills, experience and industry knowledge of key employees significantly benefit Tripadvisor’s operations and performance. Competition for qualified personnel is intense, particularly for software engineers, computer scientists, and other technical staff, and constrained labor markets have increased competition for personnel across other parts of Tripadvisor’s business. Tripadvisor's management and board of directors oversee various initiatives for talent acquisition, retention and development.
Tripadvisor’s talent philosophy is to both develop talent from within and to strategically recruit key external talent. This approach has yielded a deep understanding, among Tripadvisor’s employee base, of its business, its products, and its customers, while adding new employees and ideas in support of its continuous improvement mindset.
Tripadvisor’s overall talent acquisition and retention strategy is designed to attract and retain diverse and qualified candidates to enable the success of the company and achievement of its performance goals. Tripadvisor recruits the best people for the job without regard to gender, ethnicity or other protected traits and it is its policy to comply fully with all domestic, foreign and local laws relating to discrimination in the workplace. Tripadvisor’s talent acquisition team uses internal and external resources to recruit highly skilled and talented workers, and encourages employee referrals for open positions.
Tripadvisor supports and develops its employees through global training and development programs that build and strengthen employees’ leadership and professional skills. Leadership development includes programs for new leaders as well as programs designed to support more experienced leaders. Tripadvisor also partners with external training organizations to help provide current and future workers with the knowledge and skills they need to succeed.
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It is important that Tripadvisor’s employees represent a mix of experiences and backgrounds in order to make its company stronger, more innovative and more inclusive. Inclusion is one of Tripadvisor’s core values, and it has programs in place to promote diversity and inclusion. Tripadvisor’s diversity and inclusion initiatives support its goal that everyone throughout the company is engaged in creating an inclusive workplace. Tripadvisor supports inclusion through training on topics including Unconscious Bias and Inclusive Leadership. Tripadvisor also supports a network of active Employee Resource Groups reflecting many dimensions of diversity across the company.
Total Rewards
As part of Tripadvisor’s compensation philosophy, it believes that it must offer and maintain market competitive total rewards programs for its employees in order to attract, motivate and retain superior talent. These programs not only include base wages and incentives in support of its pay for performance culture, but also health, welfare, and retirement benefits.
Tripadvisor designs its benefit programs to meet the needs of its employees’ health while managing program costs for escalation rates at or below industry trend factors. Tripadvisor’s programs include but are not limited to wellness, mental health services, telemedicine, and partnerships with service providers that support diverse family-care need solutions. Tripadvisor continuously refines, develops and implements proactive health care strategies and solutions that allow it to enhance employee health and well-being while curbing costs.
Health and Safety
The health and safety of its employees is of utmost importance to Tripadvisor. Tripadvisor conducts regular self-assessments and audits designed to ensure compliance with its health and safety guidelines and regulatory requirements.
Available Information
All of our filings with the SEC, including our Form 10-Ks, Form 10-Qs and Form 8-Ks, as well as amendments to such filings are available on our Internet website free of charge generally within 24 hours after we file such material with the SEC. Our website address is www.libertytripadvisorholdings.com.
Our corporate governance guidelines, code of business conduct and ethics, compensation committee charter, nominating and corporate governance committee charter, and audit committee charter are available on our website. In addition, we will provide a copy of any of these documents, free of charge, to any shareholder who calls or submits a request in writing to Investor Relations, Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings, Inc., 12300 Liberty Boulevard, Englewood, Colorado 80112, Tel. No. (877) 772-1518.
The information contained on our website and the websites of our subsidiaries and affiliated businesses mentioned throughout this report are not incorporated by reference herein.
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ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS
Item 1A. Risk Factors
The risks described below and elsewhere in this annual report are not the only ones that relate to our businesses or our capitalization. The risks described below are considered to be the most material. However, there may be other unknown or unpredictable economic, business, competitive, regulatory or other factors that also could have material adverse effects on our businesses. Past financial performance may not be a reliable indicator of future performance and historical trends should not be used to anticipate results or trends in future periods. If any of the events described below were to occur, our businesses, prospects, financial condition, results of operations and/or cash flows could be materially adversely affected.
The following is a summary of the material risk factors that could adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations
Risk Factor Summary
Risk Factors Relating to Our Corporate History and Structure
● We are a holding company, and we could be unable in the future to obtain cash in amounts sufficient to service our financial obligations or meet our other commitments.
● We have no ability to cause Tripadvisor to pay dividends or otherwise make funds available to us nor do we have access to the cash that Tripadvisor generates from its operating activities.
● Our company may have future capital needs and may not be able to obtain additional financing, or refinance our existing indebtedness, on acceptable terms.
● Our Series A Preferred Stock has rights, preferences and privileges that are not held by, and are preferential to, the rights of our common stockholders, which could adversely affect our liquidity and financial condition and result in the interests of Certares (as defined below) differing from those of our common stockholders.
● Holders of our Series A Preferred Stock have certain consent rights.
● Holders of Series A Preferred Stock have certain redemption rights. We may not be able to raise the funds necessary to finance such a redemption.
● Our company has overlapping directors and officers with Qurate Retail, Liberty Media, Liberty Broadband Corporation (“LBC”) and Atlanta Braves Holdings, Inc. (“ABH”), which may lead to conflicting interests.
● Certain of our inter-company agreements were negotiated while we were a subsidiary of Qurate Retail.
● Goodwill and other identifiable intangible assets, specifically trademarks, represent a significant portion of our total assets, and we may never realize the full value of our intangible assets.
Risk Factors Relating to Tripadvisor
● If Tripadvisor is unable to continue to attract a significant number of visitors to its platform, to cost-effectively convert these visitors into revenue-generating customers and to continue to engage consumers, its business and financial performance could be harmed.
● If Tripadvisor is unable to drive traffic cost-effectively, traffic to its platform could decline and its business would be negatively affected.
● Tripadvisor’s strategy may be unsuccessful and may expose it to additional risks. If Tripadvisor’s strategy does not achieve its expected benefits, there could be negative impacts to its business, financial condition and results of operations.
● Tripadvisor derives a substantial portion of its revenue from advertising and any significant reduction in spending by advertisers on its platform could harm its business.
● Tripadvisor relies on a relatively small number of significant travel partners and any reduction in spending by or loss of these partners could seriously harm its business.
● Any failure to maintain, protect or enhance Tripadvisor’s brands could hurt its ability to retain and expand its base of consumers and partners, the frequency with which consumers utilize its products and services and its ability to attract partners.
● Weak economic conditions have, in the past, had a material adverse impact on Tripadvisor’s business and financial performance and could have a material adverse impact on Tripadvisor’s business, financial performance and the market price of its common stock.
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● Tripadvisor operates in a competitive global environment and its failure to compete effectively could reduce its market share and harm its financial performance.
● Any failure to adapt to technological developments or industry trends could harm Tripadvisor’s businesses.
● If Tripadvisor is unable to adapt to the evolving demands of its customers, it may not remain competitive, and its business and financial performance could suffer.
● Tripadvisor’s dedication to making the consumer experience its highest priority may cause it to prioritize rapid innovation and consumer experience over short-term financial results.
● Any failure in its ability to deliver quality traffic and/or the metrics to demonstrate the value of the traffic could have a material and adverse impact on the value of Tripadvisor’s platform to its partners.
● Tripadvisor relies on assumptions and estimates and data to calculate certain of its key metrics, and real or perceived inaccuracies in such metrics may harm its reputation and negatively affect its business.
● Tripadvisor’s future success depends on the performance of its key employees and its ability to attract, retain and engage senior management and a highly skilled workforce.
● The composition of Tripadvisor’s work force, in terms of geographic location creates challenges and risks and failure to properly manage those risks could have a negative impact on its business.
● Acquisitions, investments, significant commercial arrangements and/or new business strategies could present new challenges and risks and disrupt its ongoing business.
Risks Related to Legal and Regulatory Matters
● Tripadvisor is a global company that operates in many different jurisdictions inside and outside the U.S. and these operations expose Tripadvisor to additional risks.
● Tripadvisor is regularly subject to claims, lawsuits, government investigations, and other proceedings which may result in adverse outcomes and diversion of management resources, and other negative results.
● A failure to comply with existing or new laws, rules and regulations or changes to such laws, rules and regulations and other legal uncertainties may adversely affect Tripadvisor’s business or financial results.
● Tripadvisor faces risks related to its intellectual property.
● Green house gas emissions are driving global climate change that is expected to have various impacts on travel, including the world’s transportation infrastructure and tourist destinations, and such impact could have a negative impact on Tripadvisor’s operations.
● Increased focus on Tripadvisor’s ESG responsibilities have and will likely continue to result in additional costs and risks, and may adversely impact Tripadvisor’s reputation, employee retention, and willingness of customers and partners to do business with Tripadvisor.
Risks Related to Information Security, Cybersecurity and Data Privacy
● Tripadvisor’s processing, storage and use of personal information and other data subjects it to risks, laws and regulations and could give rise to cyberattacks and other risks, including damage to Tripadvisor’s reputation and value of its brands.
● System security issues, data protection breaches, cyberattacks and system outage issues could disrupt Tripadvisor’s operations or services provided to its consumers, and any such disruption could damage its reputation and adversely affect its business, financial results and share price.
● Evolving regulations, guidance and practices on the use of "cookies" and similar tracking technologies could negatively impact the way Tripadvisor does business.
● Tripadvisor is subject to risks associated with processing payment transactions and failure to manage those risks may subject it to fines, penalties and additional costs and could have a negative impact on its business.
Risks Related to Financial Matters
● Tripadvisor may fail to meet its publicly announced guidance or other expectations about its business and future operating results, which could cause its stock price to decline.
● Tripadvisor’s financial results are difficult to forecast; they have fluctuated in the past and will likely fluctuate in the future.
● Tripadvisor has indebtedness which could adversely affect its business and financial condition.
● Failure to comply with the various covenants contained in Tripadvisor’s Credit Agreement and the 2025 Indenture could have a material adverse effect on its business.
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● Tripadvisor is subject to risks relating to its 2026 Convertible Senior Notes.
● Tripadvisor is subject to risks relating to the Capped Calls.
● Tripadvisor may have future capital needs and may not be able to obtain additional financing on acceptable terms.
Risks Related to Tax Matters
● Tripadvisor’s effective income tax rate is impacted by a number of factors that could have a material impact on its financial results and could increase the volatility of those results.
● Application of U.S. state and local or international tax laws, changes in tax laws or tax rulings, or the examination of Tripadvisor’s tax positions, could materially affect its financial position and results of operations.
● Changes in the tax treatment of companies engaged in e-commerce may adversely affect the commercial use of Tripadvisor’s platform and its financial results.
● Taxing authorities have in the past and may successfully in the future assert that Tripadvisor should have collected or in the future should collect sales and use, occupancy, VAT or similar taxes, and Tripadvisor could be subject to liability with respect to past or future sales, which could adversely affect its operating results.
● Tripadvisor faces risks associated with fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates.
Risk Factors Relating to our Common Stock and the Securities Market
● Because our common stock is quoted on the OTC, your ability to sell your shares in the secondary trading market may be limited.
● Our stock price may be disproportionately affected by the results of operations of Tripadvisor and developments in its business.
● It may be difficult for a third-party to acquire us, even if doing so may be beneficial to our stockholders.
● Holders of a single series of our common stock may not have any remedies if an action by our directors has an adverse effect on only that series of our common stock.
Risk Factors Relating to Our Corporate History and Structure
We are a holding company, and we could be unable in the future to obtain cash in amounts sufficient to service our financial obligations or meet our other commitments. Our ability to meet our financial obligations and other contractual commitments, including principal and interest payments under TripCo’s 0.50% Exchangeable Senior Debentures due 2051 with a put date of March 27, 2025 (the "Debentures"), the principal and interest payments under TripCo’s Variable Prepaid Forward that matures in November 2025, and any other indebtedness that we may obtain in the future, depends upon our ability to access cash. We are a holding company, and our sources of cash include our available cash balances, any dividends and interest we may receive from our investments and proceeds from any asset sales we may undertake in the future. We currently have no plans with respect to any asset sales. The ability of Tripadvisor to pay dividends or to make other payments or advances to us depends on its operating results and any statutory, regulatory or contractual restrictions to which it may be or may become subject.
Our holding company structure could restrict access to funds of our subsidiaries that may be needed to service our financial obligations. Our subsidiaries are separate and distinct legal entities and they have no obligation, contingent or otherwise, to pay any amounts due under our indebtedness. The payment of dividends or the making of loans or advances to us by our subsidiaries may be subject to statutory, regulatory or contractual restrictions, are contingent upon the earnings of those subsidiaries, and are subject to various business considerations. Accordingly, our ability to make interest payments on our indebtedness and to otherwise meet our financial obligations at the holding company level is constricted.
Notwithstanding our ownership interest in Tripadvisor and our having two nominees on its ten member board of directors, we have no ability to cause Tripadvisor to pay dividends or otherwise make funds available to us. We do not have access to the cash that Tripadvisor generates from its operating activities. Tripadvisor generated $235 million, generated $400 million and used $108 million of cash from its operations during the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021, respectively. Tripadvisor uses the cash it generates from its operations to fund its investing activities and to service its debt and other financing obligations. We do not have access to the cash that Tripadvisor generates unless Tripadvisor declares a dividend on its capital stock payable in cash, repurchases any or all of its outstanding shares of
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capital stock for cash or otherwise distributes or makes payments to its stockholders, including us. Other than the special dividend paid in December 2019, Tripadvisor has not historically paid any dividends on its capital stock or, with limited exceptions, otherwise distributed cash to its stockholders and instead has used all of its available cash in the expansion of its business and to service its debt obligations. Covenants in Tripadvisor’s existing debt instruments also restrict the payment of dividends and cash distributions to stockholders. We expect that Tripadvisor will continue to apply its available cash to the expansion of its business.
Our company may have future capital needs and may not be able to obtain additional financing, or refinance our existing indebtedness, on acceptable terms. As of December 31, 2023, 187,414 shares of Series A Preferred Stock were outstanding and held by Certares (as defined below), with a redemption value, as of December 31, 2023, of approximately $251 million, which we are required to redeem for cash on the earlier of (i) the first business day after March 26, 2025, or (ii) subject to certain exceptions, our change in control. Beginning on March 27, 2024, we have the option, from time to time, to call and repurchase any and all of the outstanding Series A Preferred Stock for cash. Our cash reserves may be insufficient to satisfy our obligation to redeem the Series A Preferred Stock.
As of December 31, 2023, TripCo had approximately $383 million principal amount of debt outstanding, consisting of $330 million outstanding under the Debentures, and $53 million outstanding under the VPF (defined in note 3 of the accompanying consolidated financial statements).
Although Tripadvisor has substantial cash flow from operations, we have limited sources of cash and liquidity. Our cash balance is expected to enable us to fund our parent level operating expenses for the foreseeable future; however, we cannot assure you that we will not experience unexpected expenses or that we will have sufficient liquidity to fund our operations and service our debt and other obligations during the foreseeable future. For additional information about our company’s ability to potentially service our direct debt obligations, see “We are a holding company, and we could be unable in the future to obtain cash in amounts sufficient to service our financial obligations or meet our other commitments.” above.
In addition, the availability of capital for our company will be subject to prevailing general economic and credit market conditions, including interest rate levels and the availability of credit generally, and financial, business and other factors, all of which are beyond the control of our company. In light of periodic uncertainty in the capital and credit markets, there can be no assurance that sufficient financing will be available on desirable terms, if at all, to fund investments, acquisitions, stock repurchases, dividends, debt refinancing or extraordinary actions or that counterparties in any such financings would honor their contractual commitments. If financing is not available when needed or is not available on favorable terms, our company may be unable to complete acquisitions, repurchase equity or otherwise take advantage of business opportunities, any of which could have a material adverse effect on the business, financial condition and results of operations of our company. If we raise additional funds through the issuance of equity securities, our stockholders may experience significant dilution.
Our Series A Preferred Stock has rights, preferences and privileges that are not held by, and are preferential to, the rights of our common stockholders, which could adversely affect our liquidity and financial condition and result in the interests of Certares (as defined below) differing from those of our common stockholders. On March 15, 2020, we entered into an Investment Agreement (the “Investment Agreement”) with Certares Holdings LLC, Certares Holdings (Blockable) LLC, and Certares, Holdings (Optional) LLC (collectively, “Certares”). Pursuant to the Investment Agreement, we sold Certares 325,000 shares of Series A Preferred Stock, for a purchase price of $1,000 per share. As of December 31, 2023, 187,414 shares of Series A Preferred Stock remained outstanding, which were held by Certares. As a holder of our Series A Preferred Stock, Certares is entitled to receive:
● dividends, in preference and priority to holders of our common stock, which will accrue on a daily basis at the rate of 8.00% of the liquidation value of the Series A Preferred Stock. The liquidation value of each share of Series A Preferred Stock is equal to the sum of (i) $1,000, plus (ii) all unpaid dividends (whether or not declared) accrued with respect to such share which pursuant to the terms of the related Certificate of Designations has been added to the liquidation price (the “Liquidation Price”); and
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● in the event of our liquidation, dissolution or winding up, before any payment or distribution is made to holders of our common stock, an amount equal to the Liquidation Price for each share of Series A Preferred Stock held plus all unpaid dividends (whether or not declared) on such share.
As discussed above, we are required to redeem the Series A Preferred Stock for cash on the earlier of the first business day after March 26, 2025 or, subject to certain exceptions, our change in control, and we have the option, from time to time beginning on March 27, 2024, to call and repurchase any and all of the outstanding Series A Preferred Stock for cash.
These dividend obligations, call right and share repurchase obligations could impact our liquidity and reduce the amount of cash flows available for working capital, capital expenditures, growth opportunities, acquisitions and other general corporate purposes and could limit our ability to obtain additional financing or increase our borrowing costs, which could have an adverse effect on our financial condition.
Holders of our Series A Preferred Stock have certain consent rights, including with respect to dividends on or repurchases of our common stock, incurring certain indebtedness, issuing certain stock, entering certain transactions and transferring certain shares of Tripadvisor stock. For so long as at least 25% of the original aggregate liquidation value of the Series A Preferred Stock remains outstanding (the “Threshold Amount”), we will not pay any dividends on or repurchase shares of our common stock without the prior written consent of the holders of a majority of the Series A Preferred Stock (subject to certain exceptions). In addition, for so long as Certares beneficially owns a number of shares of Series A Preferred Stock with an aggregate liquidation value at least equal to the Threshold Amount, we will be required to obtain the prior written consent of the holders of at least a majority of the Series A Preferred Stock prior to incurring certain indebtedness, issuing any stock which ranks on a parity basis with or senior to the Series A Preferred Stock, issuing shares of our Series B common stock, subject to certain exceptions, entering into certain affiliate transactions and transferring shares of Class B common stock and common stock of Tripadvisor. Such consent rights may limit our financial and operational flexibility, which could have a material adverse effect on our business and/or liquidity.
Holders of Series A Preferred Stock have certain redemption rights. We may not be able to raise the funds necessary to finance such a redemption. We are required to redeem for cash shares of Series A Preferred Stock on the earlier of (i) the first business day after March 26, 2025 or (ii) subject to certain exceptions, our change in control. The “Redemption Price” in a mandatory redemption will equal the greater of (i) the sum of the liquidation value on the redemption date, plus all unpaid dividends accrued since the last dividend date, and (ii) the product of the (x) initial liquidation value, multiplied by (y) an accretion factor (determined based on a formula set forth in the related Certificate of Designations) with respect to the common stock of Tripadvisor, less (z) the aggregate amount of all dividends paid in cash or shares of our Series A or Series C common stock from March 26, 2020 through the applicable redemption date.
It is possible that we would not have sufficient funds to make any required redemption of Series A Preferred Stock. Moreover, we may not be able to arrange financing, to pay the redemption price.
Our company has overlapping directors and officers with Qurate Retail, Liberty Media, LBC, and ABH, which may lead to conflicting interests. As a result of our spin-off from Qurate Retail in 2014 and other transactions between 2011 and 2023 that resulted in the separate corporate existence of Qurate Retail, Liberty Media, LBC, and ABH, all of our executive officers also serve as executive officers of Qurate Retail, Liberty Media, LBC and ABH, and there are overlapping directors. None of Qurate Retail, Liberty Media, LBC or ABH has any ownership interest in any of the others. Our executive officers and members of our company’s board of directors (the “Board of Directors”) have fiduciary duties to our stockholders. Likewise, any such persons who serve in similar capacities at Qurate Retail, Liberty Media, LBC, ABH or any other public company have fiduciary duties to that company’s stockholders. For example, there may be the potential for a conflict of interest when our company, Qurate Retail, Liberty Media, LBC or ABH looks at acquisitions and other corporate opportunities that may be suitable for each of them. Therefore, such persons may have conflicts of interest or the appearance of conflicts of interest with respect to matters involving or affecting more than one of the companies to which they owe fiduciary duties. Moreover, many of our company’s directors and officers own Qurate Retail, Liberty Media, LBC and/or ABH capital stock and equity awards. These ownership interests could create, or appear to create, potential conflicts of interest when the applicable individuals are faced with decisions that could have different
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implications for our company, Qurate Retail, Liberty Media, LBC and ABH. Each of our company, LBC and ABH has renounced its rights to certain business opportunities and their respective restated certificate of incorporation provides that no director or officer of the respective company will breach their fiduciary duty and therefore be liable to the respective company or its stockholders by reason of the fact that any such individual directs a corporate opportunity to another person or entity (including Qurate Retail, Liberty Media, LBC, ABH and our company, as the case may be) instead of the respective company, or does not refer or communicate information regarding such corporate opportunity to the respective company, unless (x) such opportunity was expressly offered to such person solely in his or her capacity as a director or officer of the respective company or as a director or officer of any of the respective company’s subsidiaries, and (y) such opportunity relates to a line of business in which the respective company or any of its subsidiaries is then directly engaged. In addition, any potential conflict that qualifies as a “related party transaction” (as defined in Item 404 of Regulation S-K) is subject to review by an independent committee of the applicable issuer’s board of directors in accordance with its corporate governance guidelines. Any other potential conflicts that arise will be addressed on a case-by-case basis, keeping in mind the applicable fiduciary duties owed by the executive officers and directors of each issuer. From time to time, we may enter into transactions with Qurate Retail, Liberty Media, LBC, ABH and/or their subsidiaries or other affiliates. There can be no assurance that the terms of any such transactions will be as favorable to our company, Qurate Retail, Liberty Media, LBC, ABH or any of their respective subsidiaries or affiliates as would be the case where there is no overlapping officer or director.
Certain of our inter-company agreements were negotiated while we were a subsidiary of Qurate Retail. We entered into a number of inter-company agreements covering matters such as tax sharing and our responsibility for certain liabilities previously undertaken by Qurate Retail for certain of our businesses. In addition, we entered into a services agreement with Liberty Media pursuant to which it provides to us certain management, administrative, financial, treasury, accounting, tax, legal and other services, for which we pay Liberty Media a services fee, and pursuant to an amendment to the services agreement, components of our President and Chief Executive Officer’s compensation will either be paid directly to him by our company or reimbursed to Liberty Media, in each case, based on the allocation set forth in the amendment. The terms of all of these agreements (other than the amendment to the services agreement relating to Mr. Maffei’s compensation) were established while we were a wholly owned subsidiary of Qurate Retail, and hence may not be the result of arms’ length negotiations. Although we believe that the negotiations with Liberty Media were at arms’ length, the persons negotiating on behalf of Liberty Media also serve as officers of Qurate Retail, as described above. We believe that the terms of these inter-company agreements are commercially reasonable and fair to all parties under the circumstances; however, conflicts could arise in the interpretation or any extension or renegotiation of the foregoing agreements.
Goodwill and other identifiable intangible assets, specifically trademarks, represent a significant portion of our total assets, and we may never realize the full value of our intangible assets. As of December 31, 2023, we had intangible assets not subject to amortization, which consisted of goodwill and trademarks, of approximately $1,909 million, which represented approximately 54% of total assets as of December 31, 2023. These intangible assets were recorded in connection with our acquisition of a controlling interest in Tripadvisor in 2012 and subsequent acquisitions by Tripadvisor. We perform our annual assessment of the recoverability of our goodwill and other non-amortizable intangible assets during the fourth quarter, or more frequently if events and circumstances indicate impairment may have occurred. Impairments may result from, among other things, deterioration in financial and operational performance, declines in stock price, increased attrition, adverse market conditions, adverse changes in applicable laws and/or regulations, deterioration of general macroeconomic conditions, fluctuations in foreign exchange rates, increased competitive markets in which Tripadvisor operates in, declining financial performance over a sustained period, changes in key personnel and/or strategy, and a variety of other factors.
Given a sustained decline in Tripadvisor’s stock price leading up to September 30, 2023, TripCo performed a quantitative analysis of the Brand Tripadvisor (formerly Tripadvisor Core) reporting unit and Tripadvisor trademark as of September 30, 2023. Based on near-term business trends and their impact on long term assumptions, combined with macro-economic factors such as rising interest rates, TripCo concluded that the estimated fair values of the Brand Tripadvisor reporting unit and the Tripadvisor trademark were less than their respective carrying values. As a result, TripCo recognized a goodwill impairment of $820 million and a trademark impairment of $205 million during the third quarter of 2023, related to the Brand Tripadvisor reporting unit. Declines in the future revenue outlook, cash flows, or other changes in the business, may necessitate future impairments, which could be material. TripCo will continue to monitor Tripadvisor’s
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financial performance, stock price and other events and circumstances that may negatively impact the estimated fair values to determine if future impairment assessments may be necessary.
The amount of any quantified impairment must be expensed immediately as a charge to results of operations. Any impairment charge relating to goodwill or other intangible assets would have the effect of decreasing our earnings or increasing our losses in such period. At least annually, or as circumstances arise that may trigger an assessment, we will test our goodwill for impairment. There can be no assurance that our future evaluations of goodwill will not result in our recognition of additional impairment charges, which may have a material adverse effect on our financial statements and results of operations.
Risk Factors Relating to Tripadvisor
If Tripadvisor is unable to continue to attract a significant number of visitors to its platform, to cost-effectively convert these visitors into revenue-generating customers and to continue to engage consumers, its business and financial performance could be harmed. Tripadvisor’s traffic and user engagement could be adversely affected by a number of factors including, but not limited to, inability to provide quality content, lack of inventory or supply in amounts or of sufficient quality to be attractive to its consumers; increasing use of metasearch engines which may impact the amount of traffic to Tripadvisor’s platform, declines or inefficiencies in traffic acquisition and reduced awareness of its brands. Certain of Tripadvisor’s competitors have advertising campaigns expressly designed to drive traffic directly to their websites, and these campaigns may negatively impact traffic to Tripadvisor’s platform. There can be no assurances that Tripadvisor will continue to provide content and products in a manner that meets rapidly changing demand. Any failure to obtain and manage content and products in a cost-effective manner that will engage consumers, or any failure to provide content and products that are perceived as useful, reliable and trustworthy, could adversely affect user experiences and their repeat behavior, reduce traffic to Tripadvisor’s platform and negatively impact its business and financial performance.
Tripadvisor relies on internet search engines, metasearch engines and application marketplaces to drive traffic to its platform, certain providers of which offer products and services that compete directly with Tripadvisor’s. If Tripadvisor is unable to drive traffic cost-effectively, traffic to its platform could decline and its business would be negatively affected. The number of consumers Tripadvisor attracts to its platform is due in large part to how and where information from, and links to, its platform are displayed on search engine results pages (“SERPs”), and search aggregators, or metasearch engines. The display, including rankings, of search results can be affected by a number of factors, many of which are not in Tripadvisor’s control. Search engines (including travel metasearch engines) frequently change the logic that determines the placement and display of the results of a user’s search, such that the purchased or algorithmic placement of links to Tripadvisor’s platform can be negatively affected. A search engine could alter its search algorithms or results causing Tripadvisor’s websites to place lower in search query results. For example, Google, a significant source of traffic to Tripadvisor’s platform, frequently promotes its own competing products in its search results, which has negatively impacted placement of references to Tripadvisor and its platform on the SERP. If a major search engine changes its algorithms in a manner that negatively affects the search engine ranking of Tripadvisor’s websites or those of its travel partners, or if competitive dynamics impact the cost or effectiveness of Search Engine Optimization (“SEO”) or Search Engine Marketing (“SEM”) in a negative manner, Tripadvisor’s business and financial performance would be adversely affected. Furthermore, Tripadvisor’s failure to successfully manage its SEO and SEM strategies and/or other traffic acquisition strategies could result in a substantial decrease in traffic to Tripadvisor’s platform, as well as increased costs to the extent it replaces free traffic with paid traffic.
Tripadvisor also relies on application marketplaces, or app stores such as Apple’s App Store and Google’s Play, to drive downloads of its apps. In the future, Apple, Google or other marketplace operators may make changes that make access to Tripadvisor’s products more difficult or may limit Tripadvisor’s access to information that would restrict its ability to provide the best user experience. For example, Google has entered various aspects of the online travel market, including by establishing a flight metasearch product and hotel metasearch product as well as reservation functionality. Tripadvisor’s apps may receive unfavorable treatment compared to the promotion and placement of competing apps, such as the order in which they appear within marketplaces. In addition, Apple has announced new features that limit who has access to consumer data, including location information, which may negatively impact the effectiveness of Tripadvisor’s consumer data and platform. Similarly, if problems arise in Tripadvisor’s relationships with providers of application marketplaces, traffic to Tripadvisor’s platform and its user growth could be harmed.
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Tripadvisor’s strategy may be unsuccessful and may expose it to additional risks. If Tripadvisor’s strategy does not achieve its expected benefits, there could be negative impacts to its business, financial condition and results of operations. Tripadvisor is implementing discrete strategies across each segment which are connected and reinforcing to a cohesive strategy across the Tripadvisor group. There are no assurances that it will be successful in executing its strategies. Tripadvisor’s efforts may prove more difficult than it currently anticipates. Further, Tripadvisor may not succeed in realizing the benefits of these efforts on its anticipated timeline or at all. In addition, as Tripadvisor implements its strategies, the macroeconomic environment, including but not limited to, inflationary pressures, higher labor costs, and changes in consumer and merchant behavior may make it more difficult to effectively execute its strategy. Even if fully implemented, Tripadvisor’s strategy may not result in growth or the other anticipated benefits to its business, financial condition and results of operations. If Tripadvisor is unable to effectively execute its strategy and realize its anticipated benefits, it could negatively impact Tripadvisor’s business, financial condition and results of operations.
Tripadvisor derives a substantial portion of its revenue from advertising and any significant reduction in spending by advertisers on its platform could harm its business. Tripadvisor’s ability to grow advertising revenue with its existing or new travel partners is dependent in large part on its ability to provide value to them relative to other alternatives. Tripadvisor’s ability to provide value to its travel partners depends on a number of factors, including, but not limited to, the following:
● Tripadvisor’s ability to increase or maintain user engagement;
● Tripadvisor’s ability to increase or maintain the quantity and quality of ads shown to consumers;
● The development of technologies that can block the display of Tripadvisor’s ads or its ad measurement tools;
● The effectiveness of Tripadvisor’s advertising and the extent to which it generates sales leads, customers, bookings or financial results on a cost-effective basis, including its mobile transaction conversion rate;
● The competitiveness of Tripadvisor’s products, traffic quality, perception of its platform, including mobile applications, and availability and accuracy of analytics and measurement solutions to demonstrate its value; and
● Adverse government actions or legal developments relating to advertising, including limitations on Tripadvisor’s ability to deliver targeted advertising.
Any of these or other factors could result in a reduction in demand for Tripadvisor’s ads, which may reduce the prices it receive for its ads, or cause marketers to stop advertising with Tripadvisor altogether, any of which would negatively affect its revenue and financial results.
Click-based advertising revenue accounts for the majority of Tripadvisor’s advertising revenue. Tripadvisor pricing for click-based advertising depends, in part, on competition between advertisers. If Tripadvisor’s large advertisers become less competitive with each other, merge with each other or with Tripadvisor’s competitors, focus more on CPC profit than on traffic volume, or are able to reduce CPCs, this could have an adverse impact on Tripadvisor’s advertising revenue which would, in turn, have an adverse effect on its business and financial results.
Tripadvisor relies on a relatively small number of significant travel partners and any reduction in spending by or loss of these partners could seriously harm its business. For the year ended December 31, 2023, Tripadvisor’s two most significant travel partners, Expedia and Booking (and their subsidiaries), accounted for a combined 25% of total revenue, with most of this revenue recorded within the Brand Tripadvisor segment. If any of Tripadvisor’s significant travel partners were to cease or significantly curtail advertising on its platform, Tripadvisor could experience a rapid decline in its revenue over a relatively short period of time which would have a material impact on its business.
Tripadvisor’s business depends on strong brands and any failure to maintain, protect or enhance its brands could hurt its ability to retain and expand its base of consumers and partners, the frequency with which consumers utilize its products and services and its ability to attract partners. Tripadvisor’s ability to maintain and protect its brands depends, in part, on its ability to maintain consumer trust in its products and services and in the quality, integrity, reliability and usefulness of the content and other information found on its platform. If consumers do not view the content on Tripadvisor’s platform to be useful and reliable, they may seek other sources to obtain the information they are looking for and may not return to its platform as often or at all. Tripadvisor dedicates significant resources to protecting the quality
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of its content, primarily through its content guidelines, computer algorithms and human moderators that are focused on identifying and removing inappropriate, unreliable or deceptive content.
Media, legal, or regulatory scrutiny of Tripadvisor’s user content, advertising practices, and other issues may adversely affect its reputation and brand. Negative publicity about Tripadvisor, including its content, technology and business practices, could diminish its reputation and confidence in its brand, thereby negatively affecting the use of its products and its financial performance. For example, in the past, certain media outlets have alleged that Tripadvisor has improperly filtered or screened reviews, that it has not properly verified reviews, or that it manipulates reviews, ranking and ratings in favor of its advertisers. Tripadvisor expends significant resources to ensure the integrity of its reviews and to ensure that the most relevant reviews are available to its consumers; Tripadvisor does not establish rankings and ratings in favor of its advertisers. Regulatory inquiries or investigations require management time and attention and could result in further negative publicity, regardless of their merits or ultimate outcomes.
In addition, unfavorable publicity regarding, for example, Tripadvisor’s practices relating to privacy and data protection could adversely affect its reputation with its consumers and its partners. Such negative publicity also could have an adverse effect on the size, engagement, and loyalty of Tripadvisor’s user base and result in decreased revenue.
Weak economic conditions, including those that cause declines or disruptions in the travel industry or reduce consumer discretionary spending have, in the past, had a material adverse impact on Tripadvisor’s businesses, financial performance and could have a material adverse impact on Tripadvisor’s business, financial performance and the market price of its common stock. Tripadvisor’s business and financial performance are affected by the health of the worldwide travel industry, including macroeconomic conditions and events beyond its control. Events beyond Tripadvisor’s control, such as macroeconomic factors (such as tightening of credit markets and declines in consumer confidence), health concerns (including epidemics or pandemics), unusual or extreme weather or natural disasters (whether caused by climate change or otherwise), travel-related health concerns, restrictions related to travel, trade or immigration policies, regional hostilities or instability, wars, terrorism, sources of political uncertainty, foreign policy changes, natural disasters, imposition of taxes or surcharges by regulatory authorities, significant increases in energy costs, labor unrest or travel-related accidents, can disrupt travel globally or otherwise result in declines in travel demand. For example, recent conflicts between Ukraine and Russia and Israel and Hamas have impacted travel to those regions and the surrounding regions.
Sales of travel and/or leisure products tend to decline or grow more slowly during economic downturns and times of inflation when consumers engage in less discretionary spending, are concerned about unemployment or economic weakness, have reduced access to credit or experience other concerns that reduce their ability or willingness to travel. In addition, the uncertainty of macroeconomic factors and their impact on consumer behavior makes it more difficult to forecast industry and consumer trends, which in turn has in the past and could in the future adversely affect Tripadvisor’s ability to effectively manage its business. Leisure travel, which accounts for a substantial majority of Tripadvisor’s current business, is particularly dependent on discretionary consumer spending levels. For example, the U.S. and other countries have recently experienced elevated inflation which has created economic uncertainty and has impacted and may impact consumer demand in the travel industry. Economic downturn and adverse market conditions may also negatively impact Tripadvisor’s partners, its partners’ access to capital, cost of capital and ability to meet liquidity needs. These challenges faced in a prolonged economic downturn or deterioration in the travel industry could adversely impact Tripadvisor’s business, financial performance and share price. The extent and duration of such impacts remain largely uncertain and dependent on future developments that cannot be accurately predicted at this time.
Tripadvisor operates in a competitive global environment and its failure to compete effectively could reduce its market share and harm its financial performance. Tripadvisor competes with different types of companies in the various markets and geographies where it operates, including large and small companies in the travel and leisure space as well as broader service providers. Tripadvisor faces competition for content, consumers, advertisers, online travel search and price comparison services and online reservations. Tripadvisor competes globally with both online and offline, established and emerging, providers of travel, lodging, experiences and restaurant reservation and related services. Current and new competitors can launch new services at a relatively low cost. More specifically:
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●General OTAs such as Expedia, Booking Holdings, Airbnb, traveloka, Despegar, Trip.com, and their respective subsidiaries and operating companies;
●Experiences OTAs, such as GetYourGuide, Klook, and TUI Musement;
●Hotel metasearch providers such as trivago, Kayak, and Skyscanner;
●Online search, social media, and marketplace platforms for advertising spend, such as Google, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Snap;
●Global and regional travel, experiences, and restaurant brands seeking to promote direct bookings;
●Emerging online advertising businesses, such as ad-supported retail and entertainment platforms like Amazon, Spotify, and Walmart;
●Artificial intelligence driven travel curators, such as Travel Plan AI, Aitinerary, Wonderplan, Roam Around and similar websites;
●Traditional offline travel agencies; and
●Global and regional restaurant technology providers for reservation management and related services, such as OpenTable, Resy, and Tock.
There has been a proliferation of new channels through which service providers can offer accommodations, experiences and restaurant reservations. Metasearch services may lower the cost for new companies to enter the market by providing a distribution channel without the cost of promoting the new entrant’s brand to drive consumers directly to its website. Some of Tripadvisor’s competitors offer a variety of online services and, in some cases, are willing to make little or no profit on a transaction, or offer travel services at a loss, in order to gain market share. Many of Tripadvisor’s competitors have significantly greater financial, technical, marketing and other resources and have more expertise in developing online commerce and facilitating internet traffic as well as larger client bases. They also have the ability to leverage other aspects of their business to enable them to compete more effectively.
In addition, Google and other large, established companies with substantial resources and expertise have launched travel or travel-related search, metasearch and/or reservation booking services and may create additional inroads into online travel. Many of Tripadvisor’s competitors continue to expand their voice and artificial intelligence capabilities, which may provide them with a competitive advantage in travel.
Tripadvisor competes with certain companies that it also does business with, including certain of its travel partners and related parties. The consolidation of Tripadvisor’s competitors and travel partners may affect its relative competitiveness and its travel partner relationships. Competition and consolidation could result in higher traffic acquisition costs, reduced margins on its advertising services, loss of market share, pricing pressure, reduced customer traffic to its platform and reduced advertising by travel companies on its platform.
Tripadvisor relies on information technology to operate its business and remain competitive, and any failure to adapt to technological developments or industry trends could harm its businesses. Tripadvisor’s future success depends on its ability to continuously improve and upgrade its systems and infrastructure to meet rapidly evolving consumer trends and demands while at the same time maintaining the reliability and integrity of its systems and infrastructure. Tripadvisor may not be able to maintain or replace its existing systems or introduce new technologies and systems as quickly as it would like or in a cost-effective manner. Tripadvisor may not be successful, or as successful as its competitors, in developing technologies and systems that operate effectively across multiple devices and platforms in a way that is appealing to its consumers.
The markets in which Tripadvisor operates are characterized by rapidly changing technology, evolving industry standards, frequent new service announcements and enhancements, and changing consumer demands and preferences. Tripadvisor’s future success will also depend on its ability to adapt to emerging technologies such as tokenization; chatbot and new authentication technologies, such as biometrics, distributed ledger and blockchain technologies; new and emerging payment methods, such as Alipay, Paytm and WeChat Pay; artificial intelligence; virtual and augmented reality; and cloud technologies. For example, Tripadvisor incorporates artificial intelligence in certain of its operations. In July 2023, Tripadvisor launched an artificial intelligence powered travel itinerary generator which creates personalized travel itineraries using OpenAI’s generative artificial intelligence technology. The use of artificial intelligence in Tripadvisor’s business presents risks and challenges, including that algorithms may be flawed, datasets may be insufficient, erroneous, stale, or contain biased information, or content chosen for display to consumers by artificial intelligence systems may be
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discriminatory, offensive, illegal, or otherwise harmful. These deficiencies and other failures of artificial intelligence systems could subject Tripadvisor to competitive harm, regulatory action, legal liability, and brand or reputational harm. In addition, there is no guarantee that Tripadvisor’s itinerary generator or other artificial intelligence focused initiatives will be competitive or attract more consumers to its platform.
The emergence of alternative or new devices and the emergence of niche competitors who may be able to optimize products, services or strategies for such platforms will require additional investments in technology. New developments in other areas could also make it easier for competitors to enter its markets due to lower up-front technology costs. Tripadvisor may not be able to keep up with these rapid changes and its ability to integrate and develop new and evolving technologies will require increased financial and personnel investments that could have an adverse impact on Tripadvisor’s operations unless and until it achieves expected return on these investments. Tripadvisor’s future success will depend on its ability to adapt to rapidly changing technologies, to adapt its services and platform to evolving industry standards and local preferences, and to continually innovate and improve the performance, features, and reliability of Tripadvisor’s services and online platforms in response to competitive service offerings and the evolving demands of the marketplace.
If Tripadvisor is unable to adapt to the evolving demands of its customers, it may not remain competitive, and its business and financial performance could suffer. Tripadvisor’s competitors are continually developing innovations in services and features. As a result, Tripadvisor is continually working to improve the user experience on its platform in order to engage its consumers and drive user traffic and conversion rates for its partners and provide its business partners with the tools they need to succeed. Tripadvisor has invested, and expects to continue to invest, significant resources in developing and marketing these innovations. Tripadvisor can give no assurances that the changes it makes will yield the benefits it expects and will not have unintended or adverse impacts. If Tripadvisor is unable to continue offering innovative products and services and quality features that customers want to use, existing customers may become dissatisfied and use competitors’ offerings and Tripadvisor may be unable to attract additional customers, which could adversely affect its business and financial performance.
Tripadvisor’s dedication to making the consumer experience its highest priority may cause it to prioritize rapid innovation and consumer experience over short-term financial results. Tripadvisor strives to create the best experience for its consumers. Tripadvisor believes that in doing so it will increase its traffic conversion (i.e., visitors converting into clicks and/or bookings), revenue and financial performance. Tripadvisor has taken actions in the past, and may continue to take actions in the future, that have the effect of reducing its short-term financial results if it believes the actions benefit the overall consumer experience. These decisions may not produce the long-term benefits Tripadvisor expects, new or enhanced products may fail to engage consumers and/or Tripadvisor may be unsuccessful in its efforts to monetize these initiatives, in which case its relationships with consumers and partners, and its business and financial performance could be harmed.
Tripadvisor is dependent upon the quality of traffic in its network to provide value to its partners, and any failure in its ability to deliver quality traffic and/or the metrics to demonstrate the value of the traffic could have a material and adverse impact on the value of its platform to its partners and adversely affect its revenue. Tripadvisor uses technology and processes to monitor the quality of the internet traffic that it delivers to its partners and has identified metrics to demonstrate the quality of that traffic and identify low quality clicks such as non-human processes, including robots, spiders, the mechanical automation of clicking and other types of invalid clicks or click fraud. Even with such monitoring in place, there is a risk that a certain amount of low-quality traffic will be delivered to such online advertisers. Such low-quality or invalid traffic may be detrimental to Tripadvisor’s relationships with partners and could adversely affect its advertising pricing and revenue.
Tripadvisor relies on assumptions and estimates and data to calculate certain of its key metrics, and real or perceived inaccuracies in such metrics may harm its reputation and negatively affect its business. Certain metrics are key to Tripadvisor’s business; as both the industry in which it operates and its businesses continue to evolve, so too might the metrics by which it evaluates its businesses. While the calculation of the metrics Tripadvisor uses is based on what it believes to be reasonable estimates, its internal tools are not independently verified by a third-party and have a number of limitations; furthermore, its methodologies for tracking these metrics may change over time. For example, a single person may have multiple accounts or browse the internet on multiple browsers or devices, some consumers may restrict Tripadvisor’s ability to accurately identify them across visits, some mobile apps automatically contact its servers for
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regular updates with no user action, and Tripadvisor is not always able to capture user information on its platform. As such, the calculations of its unique users may not accurately reflect the number of people actually visiting its platform. If the internal tools Tripadvisor uses to track these metrics under-count or over-count performance or contain algorithm or other technical errors, the data it reports may not be accurate. Tripadvisor continues to improve upon its tools and methodologies to capture data; however, the improvement of its tools and methodologies could cause inconsistency between current data and previously reported data, which could confuse investors or lead to questions about the integrity of its data. Finally, Tripadvisor may, in the future, identify new or other metrics that enable it to more accurately evaluate its business. Accordingly, investors should not place undue reliance on these metrics.
Tripadvisor’s future success depends on the performance of its key employees and its ability to attract, retain and engage senior management and a highly skilled workforce. In particular, Tripadvisor is highly dependent on the services of its leadership team for the development of and execution on its vision and strategy. Over the last few years, Tripadvisor has made several changes to its senior leadership group. Tripadvisor’s future performance will depend, in part, on the successful integration of these new senior level executives into their roles. If Tripadvisor does not successfully manage these additions, it could be viewed negatively by its investors, employees, and partners, and could have an adverse impact on its business and results of operations. Tripadvisor also heavily relies on the continued service and performance of its senior management team, which provides leadership, contributes to the core areas of Tripadvisor’s business and helps it to efficiently execute on mission, vision and strategic initiatives. If Tripadvisor is unable to retain members of its senior management team, including its executive leadership, Tripadvisor may not be able to manage its business effectively and, as a result, its business and operating results could be harmed. If the senior management team fails to work together effectively and to execute its plans and strategies on a timely basis, then its business and future growth prospects could be harmed.
The success of Tripadvisor’s operations and the quality of its services are also highly dependent on its ability to attract, retain and engage skilled personnel. For employees, Tripadvisor competes with companies that have far greater financial resources than it does as well as companies that promise short-term growth opportunities and/or other benefits. If Tripadvisor does not succeed in attracting a well-qualified workforce or retaining or motivating existing talent, its business would be adversely affected.
The composition of Tripadvisor’s work force, in terms of geographic location, in person or remote and full-time employees or independent contractors, creates challenges and risks and failure to properly manage those risks could have a negative impact on Tripadvisor’s business. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, much of Tripadvisor’s work force began working remotely and continues to work remotely today. In addition, following the COVID-19 pandemic, Tripadvisor’s work force has increasingly shifted outside the U.S. and to independent contractors versus full time employees. Managing a remote and independent work force can give rise to cybersecurity, legal and regulatory issues and training and compliance issues, as well as create operational or other challenges, any of which could harm Tripadvisor’s business. For example, Tripadvisor’s workers are classified as either employees or non-employees (including as independent contractors or agency workers). Tripadvisor’s employees in the U.S are classified as either exempt from overtime or non-exempt (and therefore overtime eligible) and if Tripadvisor is found to have misclassified employees including as independent contractors, agency workers or independent contractors, agency workers or non-exempt employees as exempt, it could face penalties and have additional exposure under U.S. federal and state tax, workers’ compensation, unemployment benefits, labor, employment and tort laws, as well as similar international laws, including for prior periods, as well as potential liability for employee overtime and benefits and tax withholdings.
Acquisitions, investments, significant commercial arrangements and/or new business strategies could present new challenges and risks and disrupt its ongoing business. Tripadvisor has acquired, invested in and/or entered into significant commercial arrangements with a number of businesses in the past and its future growth may depend, in part, on future acquisitions, investments, commercial arrangements and/or changes in business strategies. Such endeavors have in the past and may in the future involve significant risks and uncertainties, including, but not limited to, the following:
● Costs incurred to identify, pursue and fund these endeavors that may or may not be successful and may limit other potential uses of cash;
● Diversion of management’s attention or other resources from Tripadvisor’s existing business;
● Difficulties and expenses in integrating the operations, products, technology or personnel;
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● Difficulties in implementing and retaining uniform standards, controls, procedures, policies and information systems;
● Assumption of debt and liabilities, including costs associated with litigation, cybersecurity risks, and other claims;
● Failure of any such strategy or target to achieve anticipated objectives, revenue or earnings;
● Limited management or operational control and heightened reputational risk with respect to minority investments;
● Entrance into markets in which Tripadvisor has no prior experience;
● Amortization expenses related to acquired intangible assets and other adverse accounting consequences; and
● Adverse market reaction to the transaction.
Tripadvisor has in the past invested, and may in the future invest, in privately-held companies. Such investments are inherently risky and its ability to liquidate any such investments is typically difficult. Valuations of such privately-held companies are inherently complex and uncertain due to the lack of liquid market for the companies’ securities. Tripadvisor cannot assure you that these investments will be successful or that such endeavors will result in the realization of the synergies, cost savings and innovation that may be possible within a reasonable period of time, if at all. Tripadvisor could lose the full amount of its investments; any impairment of its investments could have a material adverse effect on its financial results.
Risks Related to Legal and Regulatory Matters
Tripadvisor is a global company that operates in many different jurisdictions inside and outside the U.S. and these operations expose Tripadvisor to additional risks. Many regions have different economic conditions, languages, currencies, legislation, regulatory environments, levels of political stability and consumer expectations. Tripadvisor is subject to risks typical of global businesses, including, but not limited to, the following:
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Compliance with additional laws and regulations, including but not limited to, those regarding data privacy, labor and employment, advertising, anti-competition and tax;
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Difficulties in managing human capital and operations due to distance, time zones, language, status as an independent contractor or agency worker versus employee and cultural differences;
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Restrictions on repatriation of cash and on investments in operations;
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Uncertainty regarding liability for services, content and intellectual property rights;
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Increased risk and limits on enforceability of intellectual property rights;
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Diminished ability to legally enforce contractual rights;
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Currency exchange rate fluctuations;
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Economic or political instability or laws involving economic or trade prohibitions or sanctions; and
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Threatened or actual acts of terrorism.
Tripadvisor’s strategy includes continued expansion in existing markets and potentially new markets. In addition to the risks mentioned above, international markets have strong local competitors with established brands and travel service providers or relationships that may make expansion in certain markets difficult and costly and take more time than anticipated. In some markets, legal and other regulatory requirements may prohibit or limit participation by foreign businesses, such as by making foreign ownership or management of internet or travel-related businesses illegal or difficult or may make direct participation in those markets uneconomic, which could make Tripadvisor’s entry or expansion in those markets difficult or impossible, require that it work with a local partner or result in higher operating costs. If Tripadvisor is unsuccessful in expanding in existing and potentially new markets and effectively managing that expansion, its business and financial results could be adversely affected.
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Tripadvisor is regularly subject to claims, lawsuits, government investigations, and other proceedings which may result in adverse outcomes and, regardless of the outcome, result in legal costs, diversion of management resources, injunctions or damage awards, and other negative results. It is possible that a resolution of one or more such proceedings could result in substantial damages, fines or penalties that could adversely affect Tripadvisor’s business, financial results or financial position. These proceedings could also result in reputational harm, criminal sanctions or consent decrees, the release of confidential information or orders preventing Tripadvisor from offering certain features, functionalities, products, or services, requiring a change in its business practices. Any of these consequences could adversely affect Tripadvisor’s business and financial results.
A failure to comply with existing or new laws, rules and regulations or changes to such laws, rules and regulations and other legal uncertainties may adversely affect Tripadvisor’s business or financial results. Tripadvisor’s business and financial results could be adversely affected by unfavorable changes in or interpretations of existing laws, rules and regulations or the promulgation of new laws, rules and regulations applicable to Tripadvisor and its business, including, but not limited to, those relating to internet and online commerce, internet advertising, consumer protection, intermediary liability, cybersecurity, data security and privacy. These laws continue to evolve. For example, there is, and will likely continue to be, an increasing number of laws and regulations pertaining to internet and online commerce, cybersecurity and liability for information retrieved from or transmitted over the internet, online editorial and user-generated content, user privacy, behavioral targeting and online advertising and liability for third-party activities. Likewise, the SEC, DOJ and OFAC, as well as foreign regulatory authorities, have continued to increase the enforcement of economic sanctions and trade regulations, anti-money laundering, and anti-corruption laws, across industries. Operating in this dynamic regulatory environment requires significant management attention and financial resources. As regulations continue to evolve and regulatory oversight continues to increase, Tripadvisor cannot guarantee that its programs and policies will be deemed compliant by all applicable regulatory authorities. The failure of Tripadvisor’s businesses to comply with these laws and regulations could result in fines and/or proceedings against us by governmental agencies, regulatory authorities, courts and/or consumers, which, if material, could adversely affect Tripadvisor’s business and financial results.
The promulgation of new laws, rules and regulations, or new interpretations of existing laws, rules and regulations, could require Tripadvisor to change certain aspects of its business, operations and relationships to ensure compliance, which could decrease demand for services, reduce revenue, increase costs and/or subject Tripadvisor to additional liabilities. For example, many jurisdictions have adopted, and many jurisdictions are considering adopting, privacy rights and consumer protections for their residents, which legislation will continue to change the landscape for the use and protection of data and could increase the cost and complexity of delivering Tripadvisor’s services. Unfavorable changes could limit Tripadvisor’s marketing methods and capabilities, decrease demand for Tripadvisor’s products and services, impede development of new products, require significant management time, increase costs and/or subject us to additional liabilities. Violations of these laws and regulations could result in penalties, criminal sanctions and/or negative publicity against Tripadvisor, its officers or its employees and/or restrictions on the conduct of its business.
Tripadvisor faces risks related to its intellectual property. Tripadvisor relies on content, brands and technology, much of which is proprietary. Tripadvisor protects its content, brands and technology by, among other things, a combination of maintenance and enforcement of registered and unregistered intellectual property rights (e.g. trademarks, copyrights and trade secrets), technological solutions and contractual protections. Even with these precautions, it may be possible for another party to copy or otherwise obtain and use its intellectual property, without authorization or to independently develop similar content, brands or technology. Any misappropriation or violation of Tripadvisor’s rights could have a material adverse effect on its business.
Effective intellectual property protection may not be available in every jurisdiction in which Tripadvisor’s platform or services are made available and policing unauthorized use of Tripadvisor’s intellectual property can be difficult and expensive. Therefore, in certain jurisdictions, Tripadvisor may be unable to adequately protect its intellectual property against unauthorized third-party copying or use. Tripadvisor cannot be sure that the steps it has taken will prevent misappropriation or infringement of its intellectual property. Furthermore, Tripadvisor may need to go to court or other tribunals in order to enforce its rights or the proprietary rights that it has lawfully obtained from others. These proceedings might result in substantial costs and diversion of resources and management attention and Tripadvisor cannot accurately
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predict the likelihood of success in such proceedings. Tripadvisor’s failure to protect its intellectual property in an effective manner could have a material adverse effect on its business.
Tripadvisor currently licenses some of the intellectual property displayed on its platform from third parties. As Tripadvisor continues to introduce new services that incorporate new intellectual property, it may be required or elect to license additional intellectual property. Tripadvisor cannot be sure that such licenses will be available on commercially reasonable terms, if at all.
From time to time, in the ordinary course of Tripadvisor’s business, it has been subject to, and is currently subject to, legal proceedings and claims relating to third-party intellectual property rights, often related to user-generated content, and Tripadvisor expects that third-parties will continue to assert intellectual property claims against it, particularly as it expands the complexity and scope of its platform and services. Successful intellectual property claims against Tripadvisor could result in significant monetary liability or prevent it from operating its business, or portions of its business, or require it to change business practices or develop non-infringing intellectual property, which could require significant effort and expense. In addition, resolution of claims may require Tripadvisor to obtain releases or licenses to use intellectual property assets belonging to third-parties, which may be expensive to procure, or possibly to cease using those assets altogether. Any of these events could have a material adverse effect on its business, results of operations and financial condition.
Greenhouse gas emissions are driving global climate change that is expected to have various impacts on travel, including the world’s transportation infrastructure and tourist destinations, and such impact could have a negative impact on Tripadvisor’s operations. The long-term effects of climate change on the global economy and the industry in which Tripadvisor operates and its business, in particular, are unclear; however, Tripadvisor recognizes that there are inherent climate-related risks wherever business is conducted. For example, as climate change continues to warm the planet and make weather more extreme, much of the world’s transportation infrastructure will become less safe and reliable. Some of today’s popular tourist destinations may become intolerable as heat waves make some places unbearable and increase the chance of forest fires. Some may disappear altogether as rising seas flood low-lying islands and coastal areas. Venice, a UNESCO World Heritage site, has always been vulnerable to flooding, but in the last 20 years, there have been almost as many “high water” floods as during the previous 100 years. In other major cities, such as Amsterdam, Tokyo, Cape Town, Rio de Janeiro and New York, extreme flooding could also become a regular occurrence.
Cruise ship tourism has a larger carbon footprint than any other kind of travel and extreme weather such as intense hurricanes and storms is making cruising more dangerous. Rising sea levels can make it difficult for cruise ships to dock at coastal ports because they are vulnerable to changing sea levels, as well as extreme weather. Rising seas also degrade beaches and pose significant risks to the very viability of some low-lying cruise destinations, such as Key West, Fla., Fiji, Palau, Seychelles, and the Maldives. Coastal tourism, the largest component of the tourism industry, is threatened also by the acidification of oceans. Half of the world’s coral reefs, which contribute billions annually to global tourism income each year, have already been lost or seriously damaged. Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, which has sustained serious damage from ocean acidification caused by the ocean’s uptake of CO2, coral bleaching, pollution, overfishing-and too much tourism-has lost more than half of its corals since 1995.
Shifts in consumer preferences and governmental policy developments have the potential individually or collectively to significantly disrupt travel and impact Tripadvisor’s business as well as negatively affect its suppliers, business partners and members. Experiencing or addressing the various physical, regulatory and adaptation/transition risks from climate change may impact Tripadvisor’s revenue and profitability.
Increased focus on Tripadvisor’s ESG responsibilities have and will likely continue to result in additional costs and risks, and may adversely impact Tripadvisor’s reputation, employee retention, and willingness of customers and partners to do business with Tripadvisor. Institutional, individual, and other investors, proxy advisory services, regulatory authorities, consumers and other stakeholders are increasingly focused on ESG practices of companies. Some investors may use these non-financial performance factors to guide their investment strategies and, in some cases, may choose not to invest in Tripadvisor if they believe its policies and actions relating to ESG are inadequate. Tripadvisor’s disclosures on these matters, or a failure to meet evolving stakeholder expectations for ESG practices and reporting, may potentially harm its reputation and customer relationships.
As ESG best practices and reporting standards continue to develop, Tripadvisor may incur increasing costs relating to ESG monitoring and reporting and complying with ESG initiatives. The standards for tracking and reporting on
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ESG matters and disclosure frameworks are relatively new, have not been harmonized, and continue to evolve. Ensuring there are systems and processes in place to comply with the various ESG tracking and reporting obligations may require management time and expense. As Tripadvisor looks to respond to evolving standards for identifying, measuring, and reporting ESG metrics, its efforts may result in a significant increase in costs and may nonetheless not meet investor or other stakeholder expectations and evolving standards or regulatory requirements, which may negatively impact Tripadvisor’s financial results, its reputation, its ability to attract or retain employees, its attractiveness as a service provider, investment, or business partner, or expose it to government enforcement actions, private litigation, and actions by stockholders or stakeholders. In addition, if Tripadvisor’s competitors’ ESG performance is perceived to be better than its own, potential or current investors may elect to invest with its competitors.
Risks Related to Information Security, Cybersecurity and Data Privacy
Tripadvisor’s processing, storage and use of personal information and other data subjects it to risks, laws and regulations and could give rise to cyberattacks and other risks, including damage to Tripadvisor’s reputation and value of its brands. Information and data security is essential to maintaining consumer and service provider confidence in Tripadvisor’s services and brands. Tripadvisor is subject to a variety of laws in the U.S. and abroad regarding privacy and the storing, sharing, use, processing, disclosure and protection of personal information, the scope of which are changing, subject to differing interpretations, and may be inconsistent between countries or conflict with other existing laws. In addition, practices regarding the collection, use, storage, transmission and security of personal information by companies operating over the internet have recently come under increased public scrutiny.
Implementing and complying with these laws and regulations may be more costly or take longer than Tripadvisor anticipates, or could otherwise affect its operations. Any failure or perceived failure by Tripadvisor to comply with its privacy and information security policies, privacy-related obligations to consumers or other third parties, or privacy-related legal obligations, may result in fines, litigation or governmental enforcement actions that could harm its reputation and cause its consumers and partners to lose trust in Tripadvisor, any of which could have an adverse effect on its business, brands, market share and financial results.
System security issues, data protection breaches, cyberattacks and system outage issues could disrupt Tripadvisor’s operations or services provided to its consumers, and any such disruption could damage its reputation and adversely affect its business, financial results and share price. Tripadvisor’s reputation and ability to attract, retain and service its consumers and partners is dependent upon the reliable performance and security of its computer systems and those of third-parties Tripadvisor utilizes in its operations. Significant security issues, data breaches, cyberattacks and outages, interruptions or delays, in Tripadvisor’s systems or third-party systems upon which it relies, could impair Tripadvisor’s ability to display content or process transactions and significantly harm its business. Breaches of Tripadvisor’s security measures and those of its partners or the accidental loss, inadvertent disclosure or unapproved dissemination of proprietary information or sensitive or confidential data about Tripadvisor, its consumers or its partners, could expose Tripadvisor, its consumers and partners to a risk of loss or misuse of this information, damage its brand and reputation or otherwise harm its business and financial performance and could result in government enforcement actions and litigation and potential liability for Tripadvisor. The costs of enhancing infrastructure to attain improved stability and redundancy may be time consuming and expensive and may require resources and expertise that are difficult to obtain. In addition, to the extent that Tripadvisor does experience a data breach, remediation may be costly and it may not have adequate insurance to cover such costs.
Tripadvisor and its third party partners and vendors are at constant risk of cyber-attacks or cyber intrusions via viruses, worms, break-ins, malware, ransomware, phishing attacks, hacking, denial-of-service attacks or other attacks and similar disruptions from the unauthorized use of or access to computer systems (including from internal and external sources) that attack Tripadvisor’s products or otherwise exploit any vulnerabilities in its systems or those of its third party partners and vendors, or attempt to fraudulently induce its employees, consumers, third party partners and vendors or others to disclose passwords or other sensitive information or unwittingly provide access to its systems or data. These types of incidents continue to be prevalent and pervasive across industries, including in Tripadvisor’s industry, and such attacks on its systems have occurred in the past and are expected to occur in the future. In addition, Tripadvisor expects the amount and sophistication of the perpetrators of these attacks to continue to expand, which could include nation-state actors. Any such incident could lead to interruptions, delays or website outages, causing loss of critical data or the
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unauthorized disclosure or use of personally identifiable or other confidential information. In addition, sophisticated hardware and operating system software and applications that Tripadvisor produces or procures from third parties may contain defects in design or manufacture, including “bugs” and other problems that could unexpectedly interfere with the operation of the system. Tripadvisor has in the past and may in the future need to expend significant resources to protect against security breaches or to investigate and address problems caused by cyber or other security problems. There are no assurances that Tripadvisor’s programs and actions taken to protect against security breaches or to investigate and address problems related to cyber or other security problems will be sufficient to prevent or limit the impact of any cyber intrusion or related attack. Failure to adequately protect against attacks or intrusions, whether for Tripadvisor’s own systems or systems of vendors, could expose it to security breaches that could have an adverse impact on its financial performance.
Much of Tripadvisor’s business is conducted with third-party partners and vendors. A security breach at such third-party could be perceived by consumers as a security breach of its systems and could result in negative publicity or reputational damage, expose it to risk of loss or litigation and subject it to regulatory penalties and sanctions. In addition, such incidents may also result in a decline in Tripadvisor’s user base and client base or engagement levels.
Media coverage of data breaches and public exposure of consumer data rights has increased, in part because of the rise of enforcement actions, investigations and lawsuits. Similarly, the increase in privacy activist groups is likely to give rise to further scrutiny, investigative actions and publicity. Security breaches or the perceived threat of a breach or perceived breach could result in interruptions in service, negative publicity, damage to reputation, cause Tripadvisor’s users, suppliers and/or partners to cease doing business with Tripadvisor or do business with Tripadvisor less frequently, exposure to risk of loss and possible liability due to lawsuits, enforcement actions, investigations, regulatory penalties and sanctions. As this focus and attention on privacy and data protection increases, Tripadvisor also risks exposure to potential liabilities and costs resulting from the compliance with, or any failure to comply with, applicable legal requirements, conflicts among these legal requirements or differences in approaches to privacy and security. Security breaches could also cause travelers and consumers to lose confidence in Tripadvisor’s data security, which would have a negative effect on the value of its brand.
Evolving regulations, guidance and practices on the use of "cookies" and similar tracking technologies could negatively impact the way Tripadvisor does business. Cookies and similar technologies are common tools used by websites and apps, including Tripadvisor’s, to store or gather information, improve site security, improve and personalize the customer experience, market to consumers and increase conversion. Companies such as Apple and Google have introduced new policies governing developers’ use of cookies and similar tracking technologies, including enhanced disclosure and opt in requirements. Similarly, many states and countries have adopted data protection laws and regulations governing the use of cookies and other similar tracking technologies by websites and app developers. Such regulations could limit Tripadvisor’s ability to serve certain customers in the manner it currently does, including with respect to retargeting or personalized advertising, impair its ability to improve and optimize performance on its platform, negatively affect a consumer's experience using its platform, which, in turn, could negatively impact its business. Equally, privacy has been the impetus behind a move towards a cookie-less online ecosystem which poses a potential risk to its online behavioral advertising strategy.
Tripadvisor is subject to risks associated with processing payment transactions and failure to manage those risks may subject it to fines, penalties and/or additional costs and could have a negative impact on its business. Tripadvisor accepts payments from consumers and its business partners using a variety of methods, including credit, debit and invoicing. As Tripadvisor offers new payment options to customers, it may be subject to additional regulations, compliance requirements and fraud. Tripadvisor relies on third parties to provide certain payment methods and payment processing services and its business could be disrupted if these companies become unwilling or unable to provide these services to it. Tripadvisor is subject to laws, regulations and compliance requirements relating to payments, international money transfers, privacy and information security and money laundering, including obligations to implement enhanced authentication processes. Tripadvisor is also subject to payment card association operating rules, including data security rules, certification requirements, and rules governing electronic funds transfers, which could change or be reinterpreted to make it difficult or impossible for Tripadvisor to comply. These laws, regulations and/or requirements result in significant costs. If Tripadvisor fails to comply or if its data security systems are breached or compromised, Tripadvisor may be liable for card issuing banks’ costs, subject to fines, penalties and higher transaction fees, and/or lose its ability to accept credit and debit card payments, process electronic funds transfers, or facilitate other types of online payments. In addition, for
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certain payment methods, including credit and debit cards, Tripadvisor pays interchange and other fees and is subject to receivable holdbacks, which may increase over time and raise its operating costs and lower profitability.
Additionally, Tripadvisor’s marketplace activities in the U.K. and Europe require it to obtain or operate under a payment institution license under the Payment Services Directive Two (“PSD2”). PSD2 requires a license to perform certain defined “payment services” in a European Economic Area (“EEA”) member state. Conditions for obtaining and complying with the license include minimum capital requirements, establishment of procedures for safeguarding funds, and certain governance and reporting requirements. Certain obligations relating to internal controls and the conduct of business, in particular, consumer disclosure requirements and certain rules regarding the timing and settlement of payments, must be met. Tripadvisor has obtained a payment institution license in the U.K. As a result of Brexit, it is no longer able to passport its U.K. license to the EEA. Although Tripadvisor’s E.U. application has been submitted during 2023 and is currently under consideration by the E.U., it may not receive the E.U. license on a timely basis if at all.
It is possible that Tripadvisor could become subject to regulatory enforcement or other proceedings in those states or other jurisdictions with money transmission, or other similar statutes or regulatory requirements, including an EEA member state, related to the handling or moving of money, which could in turn have a significant impact on its business, even if it were to ultimately prevail in such proceedings. If Tripadvisor is ultimately deemed to be in violation of one or more money transmitter or other similar statutes or regulatory requirements related to the handling or moving of money in the U.S., the EEA or other jurisdictions, Tripadvisor may be subject to the imposition of fines or restrictions on its business, its ability to offer some or all of its services in the relevant jurisdiction may be suspended, and it may be subject to civil or criminal liability and its business, results of operations and financial position could be materially adversely affected.
Risks Related to Financial Matters
Tripadvisor may fail to meet its publicly announced guidance or other expectations about its business and future operating results, which could cause its stock price to decline. From time to time, Tripadvisor releases earnings guidance in its quarterly and annual earnings conference calls, quarterly and annual earnings releases, or otherwise, regarding its future performance that represents its management’s estimates as of the date of release. This guidance includes forward-looking statements based on projections prepared by Tripadvisor’s management. Projections are based upon a number of assumptions and estimates that are based on information known when they are issued, and, while presented with numerical specificity, are inherently subject to significant business, economic and competitive uncertainties and contingencies relating to Tripadvisor’s business, many of which are beyond its control and are based upon specific assumptions with respect to future business decisions, some of which will change. Guidance is necessarily speculative in nature, and some or all of the assumptions underlying the guidance furnished by Tripadvisor may not materialize or may vary significantly from actual outcomes. Accordingly, Tripadvisor’s guidance is only an estimate of what management believes is realizable as of the date of release. Actual results may vary from Tripadvisor’s guidance and the variations may be material. In light of the foregoing, investors are urged not to rely upon Tripadvisor’s guidance in making an investment decision regarding its common stock.
Tripadvisor’s financial results are difficult to forecast; they have fluctuated in the past and will likely fluctuate in the future. Tripadvisor’s financial results in any given quarter can be influenced by numerous factors, many of which it is unable to predict or are outside of its control, including:
● Its ability to maintain and grow its consumer base and to increase user engagement;
● Increases in marketing, sales and other expenses that it will incur to grow and expand its operations and to remain competitive;
● Fluctuations in the marketing spend of its travel partners due to seasonality, global or regional events or other factors;
● User behavior or product changes that may reduce traffic to features or products that it successfully monetizes;
● System failure or outages, which would prevent it from serving ads for any period of time;
● Breaches of security or privacy and the costs associated with any such breaches and remediation;
● Fees paid to third parties for content or promotion of its products and services;
● Adverse litigation judgments, settlement or other litigation related costs;
● Changes in the legislative or regulatory environment or engagement by regulators;
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● Changes in tax laws, which may significantly affect its tax rates and taxes due;
● Tax obligations that may arise from resolutions of tax examinations that may materially differ from the amounts it has anticipated;
● Fluctuations in currency exchange rates and changes in the proportion of its revenue and expenses denominated in foreign currencies;
● Changes in United States generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”); and
● Changes in global business and macroeconomic conditions.
As a result, you should not rely upon Tripadvisor’s quarterly financial results as indicators of future performance.
Tripadvisor has indebtedness which could adversely affect its business and financial condition. With respect to the 2025 Senior Notes and 2026 Convertible Senior Notes (as defined in note 5 of the accompanying consolidated financial statements), Tripadvisor is subject to risks relating to its existing or potential indebtedness that include:
● Requirement to dedicate a portion of its cash flow to principal and interest payments, thereby reducing the availability of cash to fund working capital, capital expenditures, acquisitions and investments and other general corporate purposes;
● Difficulties to optimally capitalize and manage the cash flow for its businesses;
● Possible competitive disadvantage compared to its competitors that have less debt;
● Limitations on its ability to borrow additional funds on acceptable terms or at all; and
● Exposure to increased interest rates to the extent its outstanding debt is subject to variable rates of interest.
Failure to comply with the various covenants contained in Tripadvisor’s Credit Agreement and the 2025 Indenture could have a material adverse effect on its business. The various covenants contained in the Credit Agreement and 2025 Indenture (as defined in note 5 of the accompanying consolidated financial statements) include those that limit Tripadvisor’s ability to, among other things:
● Incur indebtedness;
● Pay dividends on, redeem or repurchase its capital stock;
● Effect share repurchases;
● Effect investments;
● Enter into secured financing arrangements;
● Enter into sale and leaseback transactions; and
● Enter into unrelated businesses.
These covenants may limit Tripadvisor’s ability to optimally operate its business. Any failure to comply with the restrictions of the Credit Facility or the 2025 Senior Notes and 2026 Convertible Senior Notes may result in an event of default under the agreements governing such debt instruments and such default may allow the creditors to accelerate the debt incurred thereunder. In addition, lenders under the Credit Facility may be able to terminate any commitments they had made to supply Tripadvisor with further funds.
Tripadvisor is subject to risks relating to its 2026 Convertible Senior Notes. If any of the conditions to the conversion of the 2026 Convertible Senior Notes is satisfied, then Tripadvisor may be required under applicable accounting standards to reclassify the liability carrying value of the 2026 Convertible Senior Notes as a current, rather than a long-term, liability thereby materially reducing its reported working capital. This reclassification could be required even if no noteholders exchange their 2026 Convertible Senior Notes.
Holders of the 2026 Convertible Senior Notes may convert the 2026 Convertible Senior Notes after the occurrence of certain dates or events. Settlement of the 2026 Convertible Senior Notes could adversely affect Tripadvisor’s liquidity.
Tripadvisor is subject to risks relating to the Capped Calls. In connection with the issuance of the 2026 Convertible Senior Notes, Tripadvisor entered into privately negotiated capped call transactions (the “Capped Calls”) to reduce potential dilution to its common stock and/or offset cash payments Tripadvisor must make in excess of the principal
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amount, in each case, upon any conversion of the 2026 Convertible Senior Notes, with such offset subject to a cap. Tripadvisor is subject to the risk that one or more of the hedge counterparties may default under the Capped Calls. If any of the hedge counterparties become subject to insolvency proceedings, Tripadvisor will become an unsecured creditor with a claim equal to its exposure at that time under its transactions with such counterparties. Tripadvisor’s exposure will depend on many factors but, generally, the increase in its exposure will be correlated to the increase in the market price and in the volatility of Tripadvisor’s common stock. In addition, upon a default by a hedge counterparty, Tripadvisor may suffer adverse tax consequences and more dilution than it currently anticipates with respect to its common stock.
Tripadvisor may have future capital needs and may not be able to obtain additional financing on acceptable terms. Pursuant to the Credit Facility, Tripadvisor agreed to pledge substantially all of its assets, including the equity interests of its subsidiaries. This agreement also includes restrictive covenants that may limit its ability to secure additional financing in the future on favorable terms, if at all. Tripadvisor’s ability to secure additional financing will also depend upon its future operating performance, which is subject to then prevailing general economic and credit market conditions, and financial, business and other factors, many of which are beyond its control.
Risks Related to Tax Matters
Tripadvisor’s effective income tax rate is impacted by a number of factors that could have a material impact on its financial results and could increase the volatility of those results. Due to the global nature of Tripadvisor’s business, it is subject to income taxes in the U.S. and other foreign jurisdictions. In the event Tripadvisor incurs taxable income in certain jurisdictions but incurs losses in other jurisdictions, it generally cannot offset the income from one jurisdiction with the loss from another. This lack of flexibility could affect its effective income tax rate. Furthermore, significant judgment is required to calculate its worldwide provision for income taxes and depends on its ability to operate its business in a manner consistent with its corporate structure and intercompany arrangements. In the ordinary course of Tripadvisor’s business, there are many transactions and calculations where the ultimate tax determination is uncertain.
Tripadvisor’s future income tax rates could be affected by a number of matters outside of its control, including but not limited to changes in the mix of earnings in countries with differing statutory tax rates, changes in the valuation of deferred tax assets or accounting for share-based compensation. If Tripadvisor’s effective income tax rates were to increase, its financial results and cash flows would be adversely affected.
Application of U.S., state and local or international tax laws, changes in tax laws or tax rulings, or the examination of Tripadvisor’s tax positions, could materially affect its financial position and results of operations. As an international business, Tripadvisor is subject to income taxes and non-income-based taxes in the U.S. and various other international jurisdictions. Tax laws are subject to change as new laws are passed and new interpretations of the laws are issued or applied. Due to economic and political conditions, tax rates and tax regimes may be subject to significant change and the tax benefits that Tripadvisor intends to eventually derive could be undermined due to changing tax laws. Governments are increasingly focused on ways to increase tax revenue, which has contributed to more aggressive positions taken by tax authorities and an increase in tax legislation. Any such additional taxes or other assessments may be in excess of Tripadvisor’s current tax provisions or may require it to modify its business practices in order to reduce its exposure to additional taxes going forward, any of which could have a material adverse effect on its business, results of operations and financial condition. Any changes to international tax laws or any additional reporting requirements may increase the complexity and costs associated with tax compliance and adversely affect its cash flows and results of operations.
For example, changes in the tax laws of foreign jurisdictions could arise as a result of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (“OECD”)’s Base Erosion and Profit Shifting Project to address the tax challenges arising from digitalization. Over the last several years, the OECD has been developing its “two pillar” project to address the tax challenges arising from digitalization. The OECD project, if broadly implemented by participating countries, will result in significant changes to the international taxation system under which Tripadvisor’s current tax obligations are determined. Pillar Two of the project calls for a minimum tax rate on corporations of 15% and has begun to be implemented by a significant number of countries starting in 2024. The OECD and implementing countries are expected to continue to offer further guidance to the rules, however, the impact of Pillar Two is not expected to be material at this time. Tripadvisor will continue to monitor developments to determine any potential impact of Pillar Two in the countries in which it operates. Pillar One, which would reallocate profits from the largest and most profitable businesses
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to countries where the customers of those businesses are located, remains under discussion at the OECD, and its implementation remains uncertain. If implemented, Pillar One would potentially result in the removal of unilateral digital services tax initiatives, such as those enacted in France, Italy, Spain, and the U.K. In July 2023, more than 138 countries and jurisdictions agreed to refrain from imposing newly enacted digital service tax initiatives or similar measures before December 31, 2024, provided the Pillar One negotiations have made sufficient progress by the end of 2023. In December 2023, the OECD Inclusive Framework reaffirmed their commitment to achieve a consensus-based solution and to complete the multilateral agreement by June 2024, thereby extending the standstill on new digital service tax initiatives. Furthermore, certain U.S. states, such as Maryland, have deployed comparable digital services tax initiatives. Tripadvisor will continue to monitor these developments to determine the financial impact to the company. During the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021, Tripadvisor recorded $18 million, $9 million and $1 million, respectively, of digital service tax to general and administrative expense in the consolidated statements of operations.
Tripadvisor is routinely under audit by federal, state and foreign taxing authorities. The ultimate outcome of these examinations (including the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) audit described below) cannot be predicted with certainty but could be materially different from its income tax provisions and accruals and could have a material effect on its results of operations or cash flows in the period or periods for which that determination is made. Should the IRS or other taxing authorities assess additional taxes as a result of examinations, Tripadvisor may be required to record charges to its results of operations, which could harm its operating results and financial condition.
Changes in the tax treatment of companies engaged in e-commerce may adversely affect the commercial use of Tripadvisor’s platform and its financial results. Tax authorities at the international, federal, state and local levels are currently reviewing the appropriate treatment of companies engaged in e-commerce and it is possible that various jurisdictions may attempt to levy additional or new sales, income or other taxes relating to its activities. For example, Congress is considering various approaches to legislation that would require companies engaged in e-commerce to collect sales tax on internet revenue and a growing number of U.S. states and certain foreign jurisdictions have adopted or are considering proposals to impose obligations on remote sellers and online marketplaces to collect taxes on their behalf. An increasing number of states have considered or adopted laws that attempt to impose tax collection obligations on out-of-state companies. Additionally, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in South Dakota v. Wayfair Inc. that remote sellers are not required to collect state and local sales taxes. In response to Wayfair or otherwise, state or local governments have adopted and may continue to adopt, or begin to enforce, laws requiring Tripadvisor to calculate, collect and remit taxes on sales in their jurisdictions. Also, as described in more detail above, certain U.S. states and countries in which Tripadvisor does business have enacted or proposed digital services tax initiatives. In addition, Tripadvisor is subject to taxes in foreign jurisdictions, such as value-added tax and goods and services tax, in connection with certain foreign sales transactions. New or revised international, federal, state or local tax regulations or court decisions may subject Tripadvisor or its customers to additional sales, occupancy, income and other taxes. Tripadvisor cannot predict the effect of these and other attempts to impose sales, income or other taxes on e-commerce; however, new or revised taxes and, in particular, sales taxes, occupancy taxes, value added taxes (“VAT”), and similar taxes would likely increase the cost of doing business online and decrease the attractiveness of selling products and services over the internet. New taxes could also create significant increases in internal costs necessary to capture data and collect and remit taxes. A successful assertion by one or more tax authorities requiring Tripadvisor to collect taxes where it presently does not do so, or to collect more taxes in a jurisdiction in which it currently collects some taxes, could result in substantial tax liabilities, including taxes on past sales, as well as penalties and interest that Tripadvisor otherwise would have not accounted for in its financial statements. Any of these events could have a material adverse effect on Tripadvisor’s business, financial results and financial condition.
Taxing authorities have in the past and may successfully in the future assert that Tripadvisor should have collected or in the future should collect sales and use, occupancy, VAT or similar taxes, and Tripadvisor could be subject to liability with respect to past or future sales, which could adversely affect its operating results. Tripadvisor does not collect and remit sales and use, occupancy, VAT or similar taxes in all jurisdictions in which it has sales, based on its belief that such taxes are not applicable or legally required. Several states and other taxing jurisdictions have presented or threatened Tripadvisor with assessments, alleging that it is required to collect and remit certain taxes there. While Tripadvisor does not believe that it is subject to such taxes and intends to vigorously defend its position in these cases, it cannot be sure of the outcome of its discussions and/or appeals with these states. In the event of an adverse outcome, Tripadvisor could face assessments, plus any additional interest and penalties. Tripadvisor also expects additional jurisdictions may make similar assessments or pass similar new laws in the future, and any of the jurisdictions where
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Tripadvisor has sales may apply more rigorous enforcement efforts or take more aggressive positions in the future that could result in greater tax liability allegations. Such tax assessments, penalties and interest or future requirements may materially adversely affect Tripadvisor’s business, financial condition and operating results.
Tripadvisor faces risks associated with fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates. As a result, Tripadvisor faces exposure to movements in foreign currency exchange rates including, but not limited to, re-measurement of gains and losses from changes in the value of foreign denominated assets and liabilities; translation gains and losses on foreign subsidiary financial results that are translated into U.S. dollars upon consolidation; and planning risk related to changes in exchange rates between the time it prepares its annual and quarterly forecasts and when actual results occur. For example, in the event that one or more European countries were to replace the Euro with another currency, Tripadvisor’s sales into such countries, or into Europe generally, would likely be adversely affected until stable exchange rates are established. Accordingly, fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates, such as the strengthening of the U.S. dollar against the Euro or the British pound, have in the past and could in the future adversely affect Tripadvisor’s revenue growth in future periods.
In the event of severe volatility in exchange rates, the impact of these exposures can increase and the impact on results of operations can be more pronounced. In addition, the current environment and the increasingly global nature of Tripadvisor’s business have made hedging these exposures more complex. Tripadvisor hedges certain short-term foreign currency exposures with the purchase of forward exchange contracts. These forward exchange contracts only help mitigate the impact of changes in foreign currency rates that occur during the term of the related contract period and carry risks of counter-party failure. There can be no assurance that Tripadvisor’s forward exchange contracts will have their intended effects.
Risk Factors Relating to our Common Stock and the Securities Market
Because our common stock is quoted on the OTC, your ability to sell your shares in the secondary trading market may be limited. As of October 30, 2023, the Company’s Series A common stock (“LTRPA”) and Series B common stock (“LTRPB”) are quoted on the OTC Markets Group, Inc.’s OTCQB Venture Market, and such market is currently the only trading market for LTRPA and LTRPB. We can provide no assurance that LTRPA and/or LTRPB will continue to trade on this market, whether broker-dealers will continue to provide public quotes of LTRPA and/or LTRPB on this market, whether the trading volume of LTRPA and/or LTRPB will be sufficient to provide for respective efficient trading markets or whether quotes for LTRPA and/or LTRPB will continue on this market in the future, which could result in significantly lower trading volumes and reduced liquidity for investors seeking to buy or sell LTRPA and/or LTRPB. As a result, prices for shares of LTRPA and/or LTRPB may be lower than might otherwise prevail if LTRPA and LTRPB were listed on a national securities exchange.
Our stock price may be disproportionately affected by the results of operations of Tripadvisor and developments in its business. The fair value of our investment in Tripadvisor, on an as-converted basis, was $630 million as of December 31, 2023, which represents a significant portion of our total market value. Since our common stock began trading in 2014, the share price of our Series A common stock has had a tendency to move in tandem with the share price of Tripadvisor's common stock. As a result, our Series A common stock price may be disproportionately affected by the results of operations of Tripadvisor and developments in its business.
It may be difficult for a third-party to acquire us, even if doing so may be beneficial to our stockholders. Certain provisions of our certificate of incorporation and bylaws may discourage, delay or prevent a change in control of our company that a stockholder may consider favorable. These provisions include the following:
● authorizing a capital structure with multiple series of common stock: a Series B that entitles the holders to ten votes per share, a Series A that entitles the holders to one vote per share and a Series C that, except as otherwise required by applicable law, entitles the holders to no voting rights;
● authorizing the issuance of “blank check” preferred stock, which could be issued by our Board of Directors to increase the number of outstanding shares and thwart a takeover attempt;
● classifying our Board of Directors with staggered three-year terms, which may lengthen the time required to gain control of our Board of Directors;
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● limiting who may call special meetings of stockholders;
● prohibiting stockholder action by written consent, thereby requiring all stockholder actions to be taken at a meeting of the stockholders;
● establishing advance notice requirements for nominations of candidates for election to our Board of Directors or for proposing matters that can be acted upon by stockholders at stockholder meetings;
● requiring stockholder approval by holders of at least 66 2/3% of our voting power or the approval by at least 75% of our Board of Directors with respect to certain extraordinary matters, such as a merger or consolidation of our company, a sale of all or substantially all of our assets or an amendment to our certificate of incorporation; and
● the existence of authorized and unissued stock which would allow our Board of Directors to issue shares to persons friendly to current management, thereby protecting the continuity of its management, or which could be used to dilute the stock ownership of persons seeking to obtain control of us.
Additionally, certain provisions of the Investment Agreement may discourage, delay or prevent a change in control of our company that a stockholder may consider favorable. In particular, if our Board of Directors approves the initiation of a sale process to effect a change in control of our company or the entry into negotiations with a third-party for a change in control, and, at such time, Certares beneficially owns a number of shares of Series A Preferred Stock with an aggregate liquidation value equal to at least the Threshold Amount, the Investment Agreement requires us to provide notice of such intent to Certares, designate a nationally recognized investment bank to act as financial advisor, and provide Certares the opportunity to participate as a potential buyer. In addition, if Certares owns a number of shares of Series A Preferred Stock with an aggregate liquidation value equal to at least the Threshold Amount, subject to certain exceptions, Certares is entitled to certain rights to match offers consisting of at least 90% of cash consideration to acquire us or our Series B common stock owned by Gregory B. Maffei, our Chairman of the Board of Directors, President and Chief Executive Officer, as the case may be.
Further, Mr. Maffei beneficially owns shares representing the power to direct approximately 38% of the aggregate voting power in our company, due to his beneficial ownership of approximately 97% of the outstanding shares of our Series B common stock as of January 31, 2024.
Holders of a single series of our common stock may not have any remedies if an action by our directors has an adverse effect on only that series of our common stock. Principles of Delaware law and the provisions of our certificate of incorporation may protect decisions of our Board of Directors that have a disparate impact upon holders of any single series of our common stock. Under Delaware law, the Board of Directors has a duty to act with due care and in the best interests of all of our stockholders, including the holders of all series of our common stock. Principles of Delaware law established in cases involving differing treatment of multiple classes or series of stock provide that a board of directors owes an equal duty to all common stockholders regardless of class or series and does not have separate or additional duties to any group of stockholders. As a result, in some circumstances, our directors may be required to make a decision that is viewed as adverse to the holders of one series of our common stock. Under the principles of Delaware law and the business judgment rule, holders may not be able to successfully challenge decisions that they believe have a disparate impact upon the holders of one series of our stock if our Board of Directors is disinterested and independent with respect to the action taken, is adequately informed with respect to the action taken and acts in good faith and in the honest belief that the Board of Directors is acting in the best interest of all of our stockholders.

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ITEM 1B. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS
Item 1B. Unresolved Staff Comments
None.

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ITEM 2. PROPERTIES
Item 2. Properties.
In connection with the TripCo Spin-Off, a wholly owned subsidiary of Liberty Media entered into a facilities sharing agreement with TripCo, pursuant to which TripCo shares office facilities with Liberty Media and related amenities at Liberty Media’s corporate headquarters located at 12300 Liberty Boulevard, Englewood, Colorado.
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As of December 31, 2023, Tripadvisor does not own any real estate. Tripadvisor leases approximately 280,000 square feet of office space for its corporate headquarters in Needham, Massachusetts, which has an expiration date of December 2030 and an option to extend the lease term for two consecutive terms of five years each. Tripadvisor also leases an aggregate of approximately 340,000 square feet of office space at nearly 30 locations across North America, Europe and Asia Pacific, primarily used for sales offices, subsidiary headquarters and for international operations, pursuant to leases with various expiration dates. Tripadvisor believes that its current facilities are adequate for its current operations and that additional leased space can be obtained on reasonable terms if needed.

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ITEM 3. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS
Item 3. Legal Proceedings
Refer to note 12 in the accompanying notes to the consolidated financial statements for information on our legal proceedings.

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ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURE
Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures
Not applicable.
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PART II

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ITEM 5. MARKET FOR REGISTRANT'S COMMON EQUITY
Item 5. Market for Registrant's Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities.
Market Information
Until October 30, 2023, Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings, Inc.’s (“TripCo” or the “Company”) Series A and Series B common stock traded on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbols “LTRPA” and “LTRPB,” respectively. Stock price information for securities traded on the Nasdaq Global Select Market can be found on The Nasdaq Stock Market’s (“Nasdaq”) website at www.nasdaq.com. Although our Series B common stock was traded on the Nasdaq Global Select Market, an established published trading market did not exist for the stock, as it was not actively traded.
On October 19, 2023, the Company received written notice from Nasdaq notifying the Company that trading of LTRPA and LTRPB would be suspended at the open of business on October 30, 2023 due to LTRPA’s failure to regain compliance with Nasdaq’s requirement to maintain a minimum bid price of $1.00 per share. Beginning on October 30, 2023, LTRPA and LTRPB began trading on the OTC Markets Group, Inc.’s OTCQB Venture Market. Any OTC Markets quotations reflect inter-dealer prices, without retail mark-up, mark-down or commission and may not necessarily represent actual transactions.
The following table sets forth the range of high and low sales prices of shares of our Series B common stock for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022.
Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings, Inc.
Series B
High
Low
First quarter
$
22.17
13.00
Second quarter
$
16.15
8.43
Third quarter
$
93.67
9.16
Fourth quarter
$
32.50
20.15
First quarter
$
32.80
22.05
Second quarter
$
48.82
17.19
Third quarter
$
46.53
27.01
Fourth quarter
$
28.42
4.08
Holders
As of January 31, 2024, there were approximately 727 and 38 record holders of our Series A and Series B common stock, respectively. The foregoing numbers of record holders do not include the number of stockholders whose shares are held nominally by banks, brokerage houses or other institutions, but include each such institution as one shareholder.
Dividends
We have not paid any cash dividends on our common stock, and we have no present intention of so doing. Payment of cash dividends, if any, in the future will be determined by our board of directors in light of our earnings, financial condition and other relevant considerations.
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Securities Authorized for Issuance Under Equity Compensation Plans
Information required by this item is incorporated by reference to our definitive proxy statement for our 2024 Annual Meeting of stockholders.
Purchases of Equity Securities by the Issuer
There were no repurchases of our common stock during the three months ended December 31, 2023. Our officers and employees surrendered 138 shares of our Series A common stock to pay withholding taxes and other deductions in connection with the vesting of their restricted stock during the three months ended December 31, 2023.

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ITEM 6. SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA
Item 6. [Reserved.]

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ITEM 7. MANAGEMENT'S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS
Item 7. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
The following discussion and analysis provides information concerning our results of operations and financial condition. This discussion should be read in conjunction with our accompanying consolidated financial statements and the notes thereto.
Overview
TripCo holds an approximate 21% economic interest and 57% voting interest in its subsidiary Tripadvisor, Inc. (“Tripadvisor”) as of December 31, 2023.
The financial information represents the historical consolidated results of TripCo and its subsidiaries as discussed in note 1 in the accompanying consolidated financial statements. In the following discussion, TripCo and its subsidiaries are referred to as “TripCo,” “the Company,” “us,” “we” and “our”. All significant intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated in the consolidated financial statements.
Our “Corporate” category includes corporate expenses.
Tripadvisor renamed the Tripadvisor Core segment to “Brand Tripadvisor,” and its “Tripadvisor-branded display and platform” revenue stream within the Brand Tripadvisor segment, as “Media and advertising” revenue. These nomenclature changes had no impact on the composition of the segments, revenue streams, or on any current or historic financial information.
Tripadvisor’s stock price declined in March 2020, which triggered the mandatory prepayment of TripCo’s Margin Loan (as defined in note 5 of the accompanying notes to the consolidated financial statements). In order to repay the Margin Loan, TripCo and Gregory B. Maffei entered into an Investment Agreement (the “Investment Agreement”) with Certares Holdings LLC, Certares Holdings (Blockable) LLC and Certares Holdings (Optional) LLC with respect to an investment in TripCo’s newly-created 8% Series A Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Stock, par value $0.01 per share (the “Series A Preferred Stock”) which was later assigned to Certares LTRIP LLC (“Certares” or the “Purchaser”). Pursuant to the assigned Investment Agreement, on March 26, 2020, TripCo issued 325,000 shares of Series A Preferred Stock to Certares for a purchase price of $1,000 per share (see note 8 in the accompanying notes to the consolidated financial statements). On March 29, 2021 and April 6, 2021, TripCo repurchased a portion of the Series A Preferred Stock. See further discussion about the Series A Preferred Stock in note 8 to the accompanying notes to the consolidated financial statements.
Strategies and Challenges
Results for TripCo are largely dependent upon the operating performance of Tripadvisor. Therefore, the executive summary below contains the strategies and challenges of Tripadvisor for an understanding of the business objectives of Tripadvisor.
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Tripadvisor operates in a unique position in the travel and experiences ecosystem:
●Large, global, and growing addressable markets including travel, experiences, and digital advertising;
●A large, global and engaged audience making meaningful contributions that reinforces a relationship of trust and community; and
●A wealth of high intent data that comes from serving its audience of travelers and experience seekers at different points along their journey - whether they are engaging on Tripadvisor’s platforms for inspiration on their next experience, planning a trip, or making a purchasing decision.
In the Brand Tripadvisor segment, Tripadvisor offers a compelling value proposition to both travelers and partners across a number of key offerings that include accommodations, experiences, dining, and media. This value proposition is delivered through a collection of durable assets that Tripadvisor believes is difficult to replicate: a trusted brand, authentic user generated content, a large community of contributors, and one of the largest global travel audiences. Tripadvisor’s strategy in this segment is to leverage these core assets as well as its technology capabilities to provide travelers with a compelling user experience to help make the best decisions in each phase of the travel journey, including pre-trip planning, in-destination, and post-trip sharing. Tripadvisor intends to drive new traveler acquisition and repeat audience engagement on its platform by offering meaningful travel guidance solutions and services that reduce friction in the traveler journey and create a deeper, more persistent relationship with travelers. Tripadvisor evaluates investment opportunities across data, product, marketing, and technology that it believes will improve and diversify the monetization of its audience through deeper engagement, which, in turn, Tripadvisor expects will drive more value to its partners.
The Brand Tripadvisor segment plays an important role in Tripadvisor’s portfolio. For over two decades, Tripadvisor believes it has built difficult to replicate assets such as a trusted brand, authentic content, a large community of contributors, and one of the largest global travel audiences available. Tripadvisor’s long-term strategy for the Brand Tripadvisor segment builds on its heritage and the reasons hundreds of millions of travelers come to Tripadvisor each year. Fundamental to this strategy will be: (1) innovating and enhancing world-class travel guidance and planning products to help travelers make confident decisions in a world where it is hard to find advice you can trust; (2) prioritizing deeper engagement with travelers by leveraging Tripadvisor’s rich data and technology assets to provide more relevant, curated, and contextual content throughout the traveler journey; and (3) driving a step change in the value Tripadvisor can deliver to its partners by accelerating and diversifying the monetization of its valuable audience across key categories, including hotel meta, media advertising, and experiences.
In the Viator and TheFork segments, Tripadvisor provides two-sided marketplaces that connect travelers and diners to operators of bookable experiences and restaurants, respectively. Within the Viator segment, Tripadvisor is investing in growth, future scale, and market share gains to accelerate its market leadership position, while improving unit economics on both sides of the marketplace that provide visibility to sustainable future profitability. This means driving awareness and higher quality audience engagement, which Tripadvisor believes will drive greater repeat behavior, more direct traffic, and translate into improved unit economics over time. Tripadvisor’s investments on both sides of its marketplace, as well as in its primary offerings, are intended to deliver a differentiated value proposition that it believes will drive sustainable market leadership as its partners, operators, and travelers find themselves in an increasingly competitive marketplace environment. Tripadvisor is focused on continuing to grow both its supplier base and its user base by offering innovative tools and features on its branded platforms, and through continued awareness of its brand through marketing efforts.
Tripadvisor is focused on executing initiatives through organic investment in data, products, marketing and technology to further enhance the value it delivers to travelers and partners across its brands, platforms, and segments. In addition, Tripadvisor may accelerate growth inorganically by opportunistically pursuing strategic acquisitions.
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Current Trends Affecting Tripadvisor’s Business
The online travel industry in which Tripadvisor operates is large, highly dynamic and competitive. Described below are the current trends affecting Tripadvisor’s overall business and segments, including uncertainties that may impact Tripadvisor’s ability to execute on its objectives and strategies. Public health-related events, such as a pandemic, political instability, geopolitical conflicts, including the evolving events in the Middle East, acts of terrorism, fluctuations in currency values, and changes in global economic conditions, are examples of other events that could have a negative impact on the travel industry, and as a result, Tripadvisor’s financial results in the future.
The COVID-19 pandemic had a significant negative impact on the travel and hospitality industries, and consequently, adversely and materially affected Tripadvisor’s business, results of operations, liquidity and financial condition during the year ended December 31, 2021. In 2022, Tripadvisor generally experienced a travel demand recovery fueled by the continued easing of government restrictions globally and increasing consumer travel demand, however, during the first quarter of 2022, Tripadvisor experienced a negative impact from the Omicron variant across all segments which helped contribute to the year-over-year revenue growth rate during 2023. During 2023, Tripadvisor continued to experience strong consumer demand, particularly for its experiences offerings, across the Viator and Brand Tripadvisor segments. Asia-Pacific, which represents a small portion of Tripadvisor’s overall business, has been slower to recover due to longer and sustained travel restrictions as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, starting in the first quarter of 2023, travel restrictions across Asia began to ease relative to 2022, contributing to increased year-over-year revenue growth within this region.
Prior to Google introducing changes to its search engine results page, Tripadvisor generated a significant amount of direct traffic from search engines, such as Google, through strong search engine optimization (“SEO”) performance across all segments. Tripadvisor believes its SEO traffic acquisition performance has been negatively impacted in the past, and may be impacted in the future, by metasearch and search engines (primarily Google) changing their search result placement and underlying algorithms, including to increase the prominence of their own products in search results across Tripadvisor’s business, most notably within Tripadvisor’s hotel meta offering within the Brand Tripadvisor segment.
In response to strong consumer demand for Tripadvisor’s experiences offerings across its Viator and Brand Tripadvisor segments, Tripadvisor continued to increase investment in performance marketing and brand spend during 2023 to drive awareness and grow market share in this large underpenetrated market. Over the long-term, Tripadvisor is focused on driving a greater percentage of its bookings from direct channels. Tripadvisor is doing this by continuing to focus on increasing its brand recognition and improving the user experience across products on its website and mobile app, providing high quality customer service, and offering leading customer choice for online bookable experiences supply.
The global experiences market is large, growing, and highly fragmented, with the vast majority of bookings still occurring through traditional offline sources. Tripadvisor is observing a secular shift, however, as this market continues to grow and accelerate the pace of online adoption. Likewise, the global restaurants category is also benefiting from increased online adoption by both consumers and restaurant partners, particularly in Europe. Given the competitive positioning of Tripadvisor’s businesses relative to the attractive growth prospects in these categories, Tripadvisor expects to continue to invest in these categories across the Tripadvisor group, and in particular, within the Viator and TheFork segments, to continue accelerating revenue growth, operating scale, and market share gains for the long-term.
Restructuring and Related Reorganization Actions
During the third quarter of 2023, Tripadvisor approved and subsequently initiated a set of actions across its businesses in order to reduce its cost structure, improve operational efficiencies, and realign its workforce with its strategic initiatives. The actions taken by Tripadvisor resulted in reduced global headcount. Additional cost reduction measures taken included discretionary spend and real estate. As a result, Tripadvisor incurred estimated pre-tax restructuring and other related reorganization costs of $22 million during the year ended December 31, 2023, consisting primarily of employee severance and related benefits. Potential job position eliminations in each country remain subject to local law and consultation requirements, which have extended beyond 2023 in certain countries. Therefore, actual costs incurred may differ from estimated costs recorded as of December 31, 2023. As of December 31, 2023, Tripadvisor paid $9 million
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of these costs, and expects the majority of remaining unpaid costs as of December 31, 2023 to be disbursed during the first quarter of 2024.
These cost reduction actions are anticipated to result in an estimated $35 million in annualized cost savings in the Brand Tripadvisor segment, which includes corporate general and administrative expenses, and in addition, Tripadvisor estimates $10 million in annualized cost savings in TheFork segment, primarily related to global workforce reduction measures. Although Tripadvisor expects the aforementioned annualized cost savings in Brand Tripadvisor and TheFork during 2024, these cost reduction measures did not materially impact Tripadvisor’s actual expenses during 2023, due to the timing of when these actions occurred during the year.
Results of Operations-Consolidated
General. We provide in the tables below information regarding our historical Consolidated Operating Results and Other Income and Expense, as well as information regarding the contribution to those items from our reportable segments.
A discussion regarding our financial condition and results of operations for fiscal year 2023 compared to fiscal year 2022 is presented below. A discussion regarding our financial condition and results of operations for fiscal year 2022 compared to fiscal year 2021 can be found in Part II, Item 7. "Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022, filed with the SEC on February 17, 2023.
Years ended December 31,
amounts in millions
Revenue
Brand Tripadvisor
$
1,031
Viator
TheFork
Intersegment eliminations
(134)
(93)
Total revenue
1,788
1,492
Operating expense, excluding stock-based compensation
Selling, general and administrative expense, excluding stock-based compensation
1,086
Stock-based compensation
Depreciation and amortization
Restructuring and other related reorganization costs
-
Impairment of goodwill and intangible assets
1,025
-
Operating income (loss)
(912)
Other income (expense):
Interest expense
(67)
(65)
Dividend and interest income
Realized and unrealized gains (losses) on financial instruments, net
(32)
Other, net
(5)
(8)
(55)
Earnings (loss) before income taxes
(967)
Income tax (expense) benefit
(53)
(47)
Net earnings (loss)
$
(1,020)
Adjusted OIBDA
$
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Revenue. Brand Tripadvisor revenue increased $65 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, as compared to the corresponding prior year period.
Brand Tripadvisor revenue is detailed as follows:
Years ended December 31,
amounts in millions
Tripadvisor-branded hotels
$
Media and advertising
Tripadvisor experience and dining (1)
Other
Total Brand Tripadvisor
$
1,031
(1) Tripadvisor experiences and dining revenue within the Brand Tripadvisor segment is shown gross of intersegment (intercompany) revenue, which is eliminated on a consolidated basis. See note 13 to the accompanying consolidated financial statements for a discussion of intersegment revenue.
Tripadvisor-branded hotels revenue primarily includes revenue from click-based advertising on Tripadvisor’s meta platform and to a lesser extent, hotel business-to-business (“B2B”) revenue, which includes click-based revenue generated from hotel sponsored placement advertising that enable hotels to enhance their visibility on Tripadvisor hotel pages, and subscription-based advertising services that Tripadvisor offers to travel partners. Tripadvisor-branded hotels revenue increased $9 million during the year ended December 31, 2023, when compared to the same period in 2022. This increase was primarily driven by improved hotel B2B revenue, as well as to a lesser extent, improved hotel meta revenue in the rest of world geographic markets, primarily driven by strong consumer travel demand when compared to the same period in 2022. In addition, Tripadvisor’s 2022 results were negatively impacted by the Omicron variant during the first quarter of 2022, which contributed to year-over-year growth. Tripadvisor saw sustained pricing strength in both free and paid traffic channels, including, continued strength in hotel meta monetization in the U.S. where CPC rates remained robust when compared to 2022. The performance during 2023 was partially offset primarily by a decrease in Tripadvisor’s European hotel meta revenue during the last three quarters of 2023, as described above, as well as, an increased competitive environment in paid online marketing channels and product decisions Tripadvisor has implemented to provide more qualified referrals to its partners, leading to a decrease in click volumes.
Media and advertising revenue consists of revenue from display-based advertising (or “media advertising”) across its platform. Media and advertising revenue increased $15 million during the year ended December 31, 2023, when compared to the same period in 2022, primarily driven by an increase in marketing spend from advertisers, in correlation with growth in consumer travel demand.
Tripadvisor experiences and dining revenue includes intercompany (intersegment) revenue, consisting of affiliate marketing commissions earned primarily from experience bookings and, to a lesser extent, restaurant reservation bookings, on Tripadvisor-branded websites and mobile apps that are fulfilled by Viator and TheFork, respectively, and are eliminated on a consolidated basis, in addition to revenue from Brand Tripadvisor’s restaurant offerings. Tripadvisor experiences and dining revenue increased $42 million during the year ended December 31, 2023 when compared to the same period in 2022, primarily driven by strong consumer demand for experiences, combined with enhancements to Tripadvisor’s websites and mobile apps.
Other revenue includes alternative accommodation rentals revenue in addition to primarily click-based advertising and display-based advertising revenue from cruise, flights and rental car offerings on Tripadvisor websites and mobile apps. Other revenue decreased $1 million during the year ended December 31, 2023, when compared to the same period in 2022.
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Viator revenue increased $244 million during the year ended December 31, 2023, when compared to the same period in 2022, primarily driven by strong consumer demand for experiences across all geographies, including growth in both bookings and pricing of experiences, as well as enhancements to Tripadvisor’s websites and mobile apps. In addition, this segment’s revenue was negatively impacted by the Omicron variant in the first quarter of 2022, which helped contribute to the year-over-year revenue growth rate during 2023. Viator is also benefiting from a larger macro trend, or secular shift, as the large global market in which it operates continues to grow and migrate online from traditional offline sources.
TheFork segment revenue increased $28 million during the year ended December 31, 2023, when compared to the same period in 2022. This improvement was driven by increased consumer demand for dining, including increased bookings and pricing, during 2023 when compared to the same period in 2022, as well as the negative impact of the Omicron variant that occurred during the first quarter of 2022, which helped contribute to the year-over-year revenue growth rate during 2023. In addition, Tripadvisor estimates this segment's revenue growth rate was positively impacted by foreign currency fluctuations of approximately 3% during the year ended December 31, 2023 when compared to the same period in 2022.
Operating Expense. Operating expense increased $80 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to the same period in the prior year, primarily driven by a $47 million increase in technology and content costs and a $33 million increase in cost of revenue. Technology and content costs increased primarily due to increased personnel and overhead costs resulting from additional headcount and contingent staff to support business growth, primarily in the Brand Tripadvisor and Viator segments, as well as increased software licensing costs in the Brand Tripadvisor segment. The increase in cost of revenue was primarily due to increased direct costs from credit card payment processing fees and other revenue-related transaction costs of $23 million in the Viator segment in direct correlation with the increase in revenue, as Viator serves as the merchant of record for the significant majority of its experience booking transactions, and to a lesser extent, increased direct revenue generation costs related to data center costs and other revenue-related transaction costs in the Brand Tripadvisor segment.
Selling, general and administrative expense. Selling, general and administrative expense increased $173 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to the same period in the prior year. The most significant driver of selling, general and administrative expense is selling and marketing expenses, which includes direct costs, such as traffic generation costs from SEM and other online traffic acquisition costs, syndication costs and affiliate marketing commissions, social media costs, brand advertising (including television and other offline advertising), promotions and public relations, and indirect costs, such as personnel and overhead expenses, including salaries, commissions, benefits, bonuses for sales, sales support, customer support and marketing employees. Selling and marketing costs increased $152 million during the year ended December 31, 2023 when compared to the same period in 2022. In addition, direct selling and marketing costs as a percentage of total consolidated revenue were 41% during the year ended December 31, 2023, an increase from 39% when compared to the same period in 2022. This incremental expense was primarily driven by an increase of $137 million in paid online traffic acquisition costs and other marketing costs, including brand spend, the substantial majority of which were incurred within the Viator segment and to a lesser extent, the Brand Tripadvisor segment, in order to capture consumer demand, including increased investment within these segments in order to grow market share, slightly offset by a decrease in SEM and other paid online traffic acquisition spend in TheFork segment.
General and administrative costs increased $19 million during the year ended December 31, 2023 when compared to the same period in 2022, primarily due to non-income tax related government assistance benefits related to COVID-19 relief of $11 million received by Tripadvisor during 2022 in TheFork segment, which did not reoccur in 2023, incremental digital service tax costs of $9 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, as well as a non-recurring cost of $3 million related to previously capitalized transaction costs during 2023. These increases were partially offset by an approximate $8 million loss incurred during 2022 as the result of a fraud scheme resulting in payments to an external party (disclosed below) which did not reoccur in 2023.
Depreciation and amortization. Depreciation and amortization decreased $10 million during the year ended December 31, 2023 when compared to the same period in 2022, primarily due to the completion of amortization related to certain capitalized website development costs and intangible assets purchased in business acquisitions from previous years.
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Restructuring and other related reorganization costs. Tripadvisor incurred restructuring and other related reorganization costs of $22 million during the year ended December 31, 2023, as discussed above. These costs consist primarily of employee severance and related benefits.
Impairment of goodwill and intangible assets. TripCo recorded goodwill impairments of $820 million and trademark impairments of $205 million during the year ended December 31, 2023 related to the Brand Tripadvisor reporting unit. See note 4 to the accompanying consolidated financial statements for additional information.
Operating Income (Loss). Our consolidated operating income (loss) declined $1,000 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, as compared to the corresponding prior year period. Operating income was impacted by the above explanations.
Adjusted OIBDA. To provide investors with additional information regarding our financial results, we also disclose Adjusted OIBDA, which is a non-GAAP financial measure. We define Adjusted OIBDA as Operating income (loss) plus depreciation and amortization, stock-based compensation, separately reported litigation settlements, restructuring, acquisition and other related costs and impairment charges. Our chief operating decision maker and management team use this measure of performance in conjunction with other measures to evaluate our business and make decisions about our resources. We believe this is an important indicator of the operational strength and performance of our businesses by identifying those items that are not directly a reflection of each business’ performance or indicative of ongoing business trends. In addition, this measure allows us to view operating results, perform analytical comparisons and benchmarking between businesses and identify strategies to improve performance. Accordingly, Adjusted OIBDA should be considered in addition to, but not as a substitute for, operating income, net income, cash flow provided by operating activities and other measures of financial performance prepared in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”).
The following table provides a reconciliation of Operating income (loss) to Adjusted OIBDA:
Years ended December 31,
amounts in millions
Operating income (loss)
$
(912)
Stock-based compensation
Depreciation and amortization
Impairment of goodwill and intangible assets
1,025
-
Restructuring and other related reorganization costs
-
Other non-recurring expenses (1)(2)
Legal reserves and settlement
-
Adjusted OIBDA
$
(1) Tripadvisor expensed $3 million of previously capitalized transaction costs during the year ended December 31, 2023 to selling, general and administrative, including stock-based compensation on the consolidated statement of operations. Tripadvisor considers such costs to be non-recurring in nature.
(2) Tripadvisor incurred a loss of approximately $8 million during the fourth quarter of 2022, as the result of external fraud, which was recorded to selling, general and administrative, including stock-based compensation on the consolidated statement of operations during the year ended December 31, 2022. Tripadvisor considers such costs to be non-recurring in nature. To the extent Tripadvisor recovers any losses in future periods related to this incident, Tripadvisor plans to reduce Adjusted OIBDA by the recovery amount in those periods.
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Adjusted OIBDA is summarized as follows:
Years ended December 31,
amounts in millions
Brand Tripadvisor
$
Viator
-
(11)
TheFork
(14)
(39)
Corporate
(10)
(8)
Consolidated TripCo
$
Consolidated Adjusted OIBDA increased $37 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, as compared to the corresponding prior year period.
Brand Tripadvisor Adjusted OIBDA increased $3 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 when compared to the same period in 2022, primarily due to an increase in revenue as noted above, partially offset by increases in personnel and overhead costs to support business growth, despite the impact of Tripadvisor’s cost reduction measures which did not materially impact its segment expenses, as discussed above, as well as an increase in direct selling and marketing expenses related to paid online traffic acquisition costs, direct revenue generation costs related to data center and other direct revenue related costs, and software licensing costs.
Viator Adjusted OIBDA loss improved $11 million during the year ended December 31, 2023 when compared to the same period in 2022, due to an increase in revenue as noted above, partially offset by an increase in selling and marketing expenses related to SEM, other online paid traffic acquisition costs, and other marketing costs, including brand spend, in response to strong consumer demand for experiences and increased investment to grow market share, acquire new customers, and drive brand awareness, and to a lesser extent, an increase in revenue generation costs resulting from credit card payments and other revenue-related transaction costs in direct correlation with the increase in revenue. In addition, Viator segment revenue growth was also partially offset by increases in personnel and overhead costs to support business growth related to strong consumer demand.
TheFork Adjusted OIBDA loss improved $25 million during the year ended December 31, 2023 when compared to the same period in 2022, primarily due to an increase in revenue as noted above, a decrease in selling and marketing expenses related to SEM, other online paid traffic acquisition costs and television advertising costs. These improvements were partially offset by $11 million of non-income tax government assistance benefits related to COVID-19 relief received during 2022 recorded as a benefit to general and administrative expenses, which did not reoccur in 2023, and an increase in personnel and overhead costs to support business growth related to the travel demand recovery that began during 2022, despite the impact of Tripadvisor’s cost reduction measures which did not materially impact its segment expenses during 2023, as discussed above.
Corporate Adjusted OIBDA loss increased $2 million during the year ended December 31, 2023, when compared to the same period in 2022, primarily due to increased legal expenses. Corporate Adjusted OIBDA includes TripCo level selling, general and administrative expenses.
Interest expense. Interest expense increased $2 million during the year ended December 31, 2023, when compared to the same period in 2022, primarily due to the accretion of TripCo’s Series A Preferred Stock (as defined in note 8 in the accompanying consolidated financial statements) through interest expense, as well as an amendment to TripCo’s Variable Prepaid Forward (as defined in note 3 in the accompanying consolidated financial statements) in 2022 that increased the amount borrowed and the interest rate, which increased the amount accreted through interest expense in 2023 compared to the prior year.
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Dividend and interest income. Dividend and interest income increased $33 million during the year ended December 31, 2023, when compared to the same period in 2022, primarily due to an increase in the average amount of cash invested at Tripadvisor and increased interest rates received on bank and term deposits, as well as an increase in interest earned on money market funds during 2023.
Realized and unrealized gains (losses) on financial instruments, net. Realized and unrealized gains (losses) on financial instruments, net are comprised of changes in the fair value of the following:
Years ended December 31,
amounts in millions
TripCo Exchangeable Senior Debentures due 2051
$
(36)
(5)
Variable Prepaid Forward
(5)
Financial instrument liabilities
Tripadvisor foreign currency forward contracts
-
$
(32)
The changes in these accounts are primarily due to market factors and changes in the fair value of the underlying stocks or financial instruments to which these related. Realized and unrealized gains (losses) on financial instruments, net decreased $94 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to the same period in the prior year. The decrease was primarily due to a decrease in unrealized gains of $36 million related to the Preferred Stock Derivative (defined in note 3 of the accompanying consolidated financial statements), an increase in unrealized losses of $31 million related to the TripCo 0.50% Exchangeable Senior Debentures due 2051 (the “Debentures”), and a decrease in unrealized gains related to the Variable Prepaid Forward (defined in note 3 of the accompanying consolidated financial statements) of $23 million.
Other, net. Other, net expense decreased $3 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, when compared to the same period in 2022. Activity in the Other, net account primarily relates to foreign exchange gains (losses), share of earnings (losses) of affiliates, and other gain (loss) at Tripadvisor.
Income taxes. The Company had income tax expense of $53 million and $47 million for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively.
During 2023, the Company recognized tax expense instead of a tax benefit at the expected federal tax rate of 21% primarily due to goodwill impairments that are not deductible for tax purposes and changes in unrecognized tax benefits.
During 2022, the Company recognized tax expense greater than the expected federal tax rate of 21% primarily due to changes in unrecognized tax benefits and the recognition of excess tax benefits and shortfalls to stock based compensation.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
As of December 31, 2023, substantially all of our cash and cash equivalents consist of cash on hand in global financial institutions, money market funds and marketable securities, with maturities of 90 days or less at the date purchased.
The following are potential sources of liquidity: available cash balances, proceeds from asset sales, monetization of our investments (including sales of Tripadvisor shares), outstanding or anticipated debt facilities, debt and equity issuances, and dividend and interest receipts.
As of December 31, 2023, TripCo had a cash balance of $1,090 million. Approximately $1,067 million of the cash balance is held at Tripadvisor. Although TripCo has a 57% voting interest in Tripadvisor, Tripadvisor is a separate public company with a significant non-controlling interest, as TripCo has only a 21% economic interest in Tripadvisor.
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Even though TripCo controls Tripadvisor through its voting interest and board representation, decision making with respect to using Tripadvisor’s cash balances must consider Tripadvisor’s minority holders. Accordingly, any potential distributions of cash from Tripadvisor to TripCo would generally be on a pro rata basis based on economic ownership interests. Covenants in Tripadvisor’s debt instruments also restrict the payment of dividends and cash distributions to stockholders. See note 5 in the accompanying consolidated financial statements.
As of December 31, 2023, approximately $247 million of TripCo cash and cash equivalents were held by Tripadvisor’s international subsidiaries outside of the U.S., of which approximately 50% was located in the U.K., with the majority of Tripadvisor’s cash denominated in U.S. dollars. As of December 31, 2023, Tripadvisor had $483 million of cumulative undistributed earnings in foreign subsidiaries, which were no longer considered to be indefinitely reinvested. See note 7 in the accompanying consolidated financial statements for additional information.
As of December 31, 2023, Tripadvisor is party to a credit agreement, which, among other things, provides for a $500 million revolving credit facility (the “Credit Facility”) with a maturity date of June 29, 2028 (unless, on any date that is 91 days prior to the final scheduled maturity date in respect of any indebtedness outstanding under certain “specified debt,” the aggregate outstanding principal amount of such specified debt is $200 million or more, then the maturity date will be such business day). As of December 31, 2023 and 2022, Tripadvisor had no outstanding borrowings under the Credit Facility. Tripadvisor may borrow from the Credit Facility in U.S. dollars, Euros and Sterling. See note 5 to the accompanying consolidated financial statements for information regarding interest rates on potential borrowings under the Credit Facility.
Tripadvisor is required to pay a quarterly commitment fee, at an applicable rate ranging from 0.25% to 0.40%, on the daily unused portion of the Credit Facility for each fiscal quarter and in connection with the issuance of letters of credit. As of December 31, 2023, Tripadvisor’s unused revolver capacity was subject to a commitment fee of 0.25%, given Tripadvisor’s total net leverage ratio. The Credit Facility, among other things, requires Tripadvisor to maintain a maximum total net leverage ratio and contains certain customary affirmative and negative covenants and events of default, including for a change of control. As of December 31, 2023 and 2022, Tripadvisor was in compliance with its covenant requirements in effect under the Credit Facility. While there can be no assurance that Tripadvisor will be able to meet the total net leverage ratio covenant in the future, based on its current projections, Tripadvisor does not believe there is a material risk that it will not remain in compliance throughout the next twelve months.
As of December 31, 2023, Tripadvisor had an aggregate principal amount of $845 million in long-term debt, as a result of the 2025 Senior Notes and 2026 Convertible Senior Notes, as discussed below.
In July 2020, Tripadvisor completed the sale of $500 million of its outstanding aggregate principal amount of senior notes due 2025 (“2025 Senior Notes”). The 2025 Senior Notes provide, among other things, that interest at an interest rate of 7.0% per annum is payable on January 15 and July 15 of each year, until their maturity on July 15, 2025. The 2025 Senior Notes are senior unsecured obligations of Tripadvisor, although unconditionally guaranteed on a joint and several basis, by certain of Tripadvisor’s domestic subsidiaries. In March 2021, Tripadvisor completed the sale of $345 million of convertible senior notes due 2026 (“2026 Convertible Senior Notes”). The 2026 Convertible Senior Notes provide, among other things, that interest, at an interest rate of 0.25% per annum, is payable on April 1 and October 1 of each year, until their maturity on April 1, 2026. The 2026 Convertible Senior Notes are senior unsecured obligations of Tripadvisor, although unconditionally guaranteed on a joint and several basis, by certain of Tripadvisor’s domestic subsidiaries.
The 2025 Senior Notes and 2026 Convertible Senior Notes are not registered securities and there are currently no plans to register these notes as securities in the future. Tripadvisor may from time to time repurchase the 2025 Senior Notes or 2026 Convertible Senior Notes through tender offers, open market purchases, privately negotiated transactions or otherwise. Such repurchases, if any, will depend on prevailing market conditions, liquidity requirements, contractual restrictions and other factors.
Historically, Tripadvisor’s operating cash flows have been sufficient to fund its working capital requirements, capital expenditures and long term debt obligations and other financial commitments and are expected to be sufficient in future periods.
II-11
Years ended December 31,
amounts in millions
Cash flow information
Tripadvisor cash provided (used) by operating activities
$
Corporate and other cash provided (used) by operating activities
(9)
(10)
Net cash provided (used) by operating activities
$
Tripadvisor cash provided (used) by investing activities
$
(63)
(52)
Corporate and other cash provided (used) by investing activities
-
-
Net cash provided (used) by investing activities
$
(63)
(52)
Tripadvisor cash provided (used) by financing activities
$
(127)
(27)
Corporate and other cash provided (used) by financing activities
-
Net cash provided (used) by financing activities
$
(127)
(22)
During the year ended December 31, 2023, Tripadvisor’s primary source of cash was from operations, while its primary uses of cash were $100 million to repurchase shares of its common stock, $63 million of capital expended for property and equipment and $17 million related to payments of withholding taxes on net share settlements of equity awards.
The projected use of TripCo’s corporate cash will primarily be to pay fees (not expected to exceed $4 million annually) to Liberty Media for providing certain services pursuant to the services agreement and the facilities sharing agreement, payment of dividends on the Series A Preferred Stock (unless added to the liquidation price or paid in shares of Series A common stock of TripCo), interest expense on TripCo’s 0.50% Exchangeable Senior Debentures due 2051 (approximately $2 million annually) and to pay any other corporate level expenses. Debt service costs accrue on the variable prepaid forward borrowing described in note 5 to the accompanying consolidated financial statements. TripCo believes that its available cash and cash equivalents will be sufficient through at least the next twelve months. Beyond twelve months TripCo has certain obligations that will require further liquidity action which could include actions described above in potential sources of liquidity.
Tripadvisor believes that its available cash and cash equivalents will be sufficient to fund Tripadvisor’s foreseeable working capital requirements, capital expenditures, existing business growth initiatives, debt and interest obligations, lease commitments, tax-related payments and other financial commitments through at least the next twelve months. Tripadvisor’s future capital requirements may also include capital needs for acquisitions, and/or other expenditures in support of its business strategy, and may potentially reduce Tripadvisor’s cash balance and/or require Tripadvisor to borrow under its Credit Facility or to seek other financing alternatives.
Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements and Material Cash Requirements
We have contingent liabilities related to legal and tax proceedings and other matters arising in the ordinary course of business including potential tax obligations associated with certain transactions following the formation of TripCo. Although it is reasonably possible we may incur losses upon conclusion of such matters, an estimate of any loss or range of loss cannot be made. In the opinion of management, it is expected that amounts, if any, which may be required to satisfy such contingencies will not be material in relation to the accompanying consolidated financial statements.
The following table summarizes current and long-term material cash requirements, both accrued and off-balance sheet, as of December 31, 2023, excluding uncertain tax positions as it is undeterminable when payments will be made.
II-12
Payments due by period
Less than
More than
Total
1 year
1 - 3 years
3 - 5 years
5 years
amounts in millions
Material Cash Requirements
Finance and operating lease obligations (1)
$
Long-term debt (2)
1,232
-
-
Expected interest payments (3)
Series A Preferred Stock (4)
-
-
-
Other obligations (5)
-
Total
$
1,742
1,248
(1) Estimated future lease payments for Tripadvisor’s corporate headquarters lease in Needham, Massachusetts and operating leases, primarily for office space, with non-cancelable lease terms. These amounts exclude expected rental income under non-cancelable subleases. See note 6 in the accompanying consolidated financial statements for further information.
(2) Amounts are stated at the face amount at maturity of our debt instruments and may differ from the amounts stated in our consolidated balance sheet to the extent debt instruments have elements which are reported at fair value. Amounts do not assume additional borrowings or refinancings of existing debt.
(3) Amounts are based on our outstanding debt at December 31, 2023 and assume that our existing debt is repaid at maturity.
(4) Amount that will be paid to settle debt host component of Series A Preferred Stock on March 27, 2025, assuming TripCo does not exercise its call right, as described in note 8 to the accompanying consolidated financial statements, prior to such date. This amount differs from the preferred stock liability balance stated in our consolidated balance sheet as the liability is being accreted to the amount to be paid upon settlement. See note 8 to the accompanying consolidated financial statements for further information.
(5) Includes purchase obligations, expected commitment fee payments on the Credit Facility and long term income taxes payable.
Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates
The preparation of our financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires us to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenue and expenses during the reporting period. Listed below are the accounting estimates that we believe are critical to our financial statements due to the degree of uncertainty regarding the estimates or assumptions involved and the magnitude of the asset, liability, revenue or expense being reported.
Recognition and Recoverability of Goodwill, Intangible and Long-lived Assets
We account for acquired businesses using the acquisition method of accounting which requires that the assets acquired and liabilities assumed be recorded at the date of acquisition at their respective fair values. Any excess of the purchase price over the estimated fair values of the net assets acquired is recorded as goodwill. We test goodwill for impairment at the reporting unit level (operating segment or one level below an operating segment). Goodwill is allocated to our reporting units at the date the goodwill is initially recorded. Once goodwill has been allocated to the reporting units, it no longer retains its identification with a particular acquisition and becomes identified with the reporting unit in its entirety. Accordingly, the fair value of the reporting unit as a whole is available to support the recoverability of its goodwill.
Our non-financial instrument valuations are primarily comprised of our annual assessment of the recoverability of our goodwill and other nonamortizable intangibles, such as trademarks and our evaluation of the recoverability of our other long-lived assets upon certain triggering events and the initial recognition of such assets through the application of
II-13
the purchase accounting method. If the carrying value of our definite lived intangible assets and long-lived assets exceeds their expected undiscounted cash flows, we are required to write the carrying value down to fair value. Any such writedown is included in impairment of long-lived assets in our consolidated statement of operations. A high degree of judgment is required to estimate the fair value of our long-lived assets. We may use quoted market prices, prices for similar assets, present value techniques and other valuation techniques to prepare these estimates. We may need to make estimates of future cash flows and discount rates as well as other assumptions in order to implement these valuation techniques. Due to the high degree of judgment involved in our estimation techniques, any value ultimately derived from our long-lived assets may differ from our estimate of fair value.
We perform our annual assessment of the recoverability of our goodwill and other non-amortizable intangible assets during the fourth quarter, or more frequently, if events and circumstances indicate impairment may have occurred. The accounting guidance permits entities to first assess qualitative factors to determine whether it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying amount as a basis for determining whether it is necessary to perform the quantitative goodwill impairment test. The accounting guidance also allows entities the option to bypass the qualitative assessment for any reporting unit in any period and proceed directly to the quantitative impairment test. The entity may resume performing the qualitative assessment in any subsequent period. In evaluating goodwill on a qualitative basis, the Company reviews the business performance of each reporting unit and evaluates other relevant factors as identified in the relevant accounting guidance to determine whether it is more likely than not that an indicated impairment exists for any of our reporting units. The Company considers whether there are any negative macroeconomic conditions, industry specific conditions, market changes, increased competition, increased costs in doing business, management challenges, the legal environments and how these factors might impact company specific performance in future periods. As part of the analysis, the Company also considers fair value determinations for certain reporting units that have been made at various points throughout the current and prior year for other purposes. If, based on the qualitative analysis, it is more likely than not that an impairment exists, the Company performs the quantitative impairment test.
As of December 31, 2023, the intangible assets not subject to amortization for each of our reportable segments were as follows:
Goodwill
Trademarks
Total
amounts in millions
Brand Tripadvisor
$
1,159
1,681
Viator
-
TheFork
-
$
1,387
1,909
Given a sustained decline in Tripadvisor’s stock price leading up to September 30, 2023, TripCo performed a quantitative analysis of the Brand Tripadvisor reporting unit and Tripadvisor trademark as of September 30, 2023. Based on near-term business trends and their impact on long term assumptions, combined with macro-economic factors such as rising interest rates, we concluded that the estimated fair values of the Brand Tripadvisor reporting unit and the Tripadvisor trademark were less than their respective carrying values. As a result, TripCo recognized a goodwill impairment of $820 million and a trademark impairment of $205 million during the year ended December 31, 2023, related to the Brand Tripadvisor reporting unit. The fair value of the reporting unit was determined using a combination of market multiples (market approach) and discounted cash flow (income approach) calculations (Level 3). The fair value of the trademarks was determined using the relief from royalty method (Level 3).
TripCo will continue to monitor Tripadvisor’s financial performance, stock price and other events and circumstances that may negatively impact the estimated fair values to determine if future impairment assessments may be necessary.
Income Taxes
We are required to estimate the amount of tax payable or refundable for the current year and the deferred income tax liabilities and assets for the future tax consequences of events that have been reflected in our financial statements or tax returns for each taxing jurisdiction in which we operate. This process requires our management to make judgments
II-14
regarding the timing and probability of the ultimate tax impact of the various agreements and transactions that we enter into. Based on these judgments we may record tax reserves or adjustments to valuation allowances on deferred tax assets to reflect the expected realizability of future tax benefits. Actual income taxes could vary from these estimates due to future changes in income tax law, significant changes in the jurisdictions in which we operate, our inability to generate sufficient future taxable income or unpredicted results from the final determination of each year’s liability by taxing authorities. These changes could have a significant impact on our financial position.
Additionally, Tripadvisor records liabilities to address uncertain tax positions taken in previously filed tax returns or that are expected to be taken in a future tax return. The determination for required liabilities is based upon an analysis of each individual tax position, taking into consideration whether it is more likely than not that the tax position, based on its technical merits, will be sustained upon examination. For those positions for which a conclusion is reached that it is more likely than not it will be sustained, the largest amount of tax benefit that is greater than 50% likely of being realized upon ultimate settlement with the taxing authority is recognized. The difference between the amount recognized and the total tax position is recorded as a liability. The ultimate resolution of these tax positions may be greater or less than the liabilities recorded.

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ITEM 7A. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK
Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk.
We are exposed to market risk in the normal course of business due to our ongoing investment and financial activities and the conduct of operations by Tripadvisor in different foreign countries. Market risk refers to the risk of loss arising from adverse changes in stock prices, interest rates and foreign currency exchange rates. The risk of loss can be assessed from the perspective of adverse changes in fair values, cash flows and future earnings. We have established policies, procedures and internal processes governing our management of market risks and the use of financial instruments to manage our exposure to such risks.
We are exposed to changes in interest rates primarily as a result of our borrowing and investment activities, which include investments in fixed and floating rate debt instruments and borrowings used to maintain liquidity and to fund business operations. The nature and amount of our long-term and short-term debt are expected to vary as a result of future requirements, market conditions and other factors. We expect to manage our exposure to interest rates by maintaining what we believe is an appropriate mix of fixed and variable rate debt. We believe this best protects us from interest rate risk. We expect to achieve this mix by (i) issuing fixed rate debt that we believe has a low stated interest rate and significant term to maturity, (ii) issuing variable rate debt with appropriate maturities and interest rates and (iii) entering into interest rate swap arrangements when we deem appropriate. As of December 31, 2023, our debt is comprised of the following amounts:
Variable rate debt
Fixed rate debt
Principal
Weighted avg
Principal
Weighted avg
amount
interest rate
Amount
interest rate
dollar amounts in millions
Tripadvisor
N/A
N/A
$
4.2%
TripCo debt
N/A
N/A
$
1.0%
TripCo is exposed to foreign exchange rate fluctuations related primarily to the monetary assets and liabilities and the financial results of Tripadvisor's foreign subsidiaries. Assets and liabilities of foreign subsidiaries for which the functional currency is the local currency are translated into U.S. dollars at period-end exchange rates, and the statements of operations are generally translated at the average exchange rate for the period. Exchange rate fluctuations on translating foreign currency financial statements into U.S. dollars that result in unrealized gains or losses are referred to as translation adjustments. Cumulative translation adjustments are recorded in accumulated other comprehensive earnings (loss) as a separate component of stockholders' equity. Transactions denominated in currencies other than the functional currency are recorded based on exchange rates at the time such transactions arise. Subsequent changes in exchange rates result in transaction gains and losses, which are reflected in income as unrealized (based on period-end translations) or realized upon settlement of the transactions. Cash flows from our operations in foreign countries are translated at the average rate for the period. Accordingly, TripCo may experience economic loss and a negative impact on earnings and equity with
II-15
respect to our holdings solely as a result of foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations. Tripadvisor enters into foreign currency forward contracts to manage its risk related to foreign currency exchange rates when it deems appropriate.

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ITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA
Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data.
The consolidated financial statements of Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings, Inc. are filed under this Item, beginning on Page II-21. The financial statement schedules required by Regulation S-X are filed under Item 15 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

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ITEM 9. CHANGES IN AND DISAGREEMENTS WITH ACCOUNTANTS
Item 9. Changes in and Disagreements with Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosure.
None.

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ITEM 9A. CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES
Item 9A. Controls and Procedures.
In accordance with Exchange Act Rules 13a-15 and 15d-15, the Company carried out an evaluation, under the supervision and with the participation of management, including its chief executive officer and its principal accounting and financial officer (the "Executives") and under the oversight of its Board of Directors, of the effectiveness of the design and operation of its disclosure controls and procedures as of December 31, 2023. Based on that evaluation, the Executives concluded that the Company's disclosure controls and procedures were effective as of December 31, 2023 to provide reasonable assurance that information required to be disclosed in its reports filed or submitted under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the Securities and Exchange Commission's rules and forms.
See page II-17 for Management’s Report on Internal Control Over Financial Reporting.
There has been no change in the Company's internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the quarter ended December 31, 2023 that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, its internal control over financial reporting.

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ITEM 9B. OTHER INFORMATION
Item 9B. Other Information.
Insider Trading
None of the Company’s directors or officers adopted or terminated a Rule 10b5-1 trading arrangement or a non-Rule 10b5-1 trading arrangement during the Company’s fiscal quarter ended December 31, 2023.

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ITEM 10. DIRECTORS, EXECUTIVE OFFICERS AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Item 10.
Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance

---

ITEM 11. EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION
Item 11.
Executive Compensation

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ITEM 12. SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS
Item 12.
Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters

---

ITEM 13. CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS
Item 13.
Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence

---

ITEM 14. PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING FEES AND SERVICES
Item 14.
Principal Accountant Fees and Services
We expect to file our definitive proxy statement for our 2024 Annual Meeting of Stockholders with the Securities and Exchange Commission on or before April 29, 2024.
III-1
PART IV.

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ITEM 15. EXHIBITS, FINANCIAL STATEMENT SCHEDULES
Item 15. Exhibits and Financial Statement Schedules.
(a)(1) Financial Statements
Included in Part II of this report:
Page No
Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings, Inc.:
Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm (KPMG LLP, Denver CO, Auditor Firm ID: 185)
II-18
Consolidated Balance Sheets, December 31, 2023 and 2022
II-21
Consolidated Statements of Operations, Years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021
II-23
Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Earnings (Loss), Years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021
II-24
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows, Years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021
II-25
Consolidated Statements of Equity, Years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021
II-26
Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements, December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021
II-27
(a)(2) Financial Statement Schedules
(i) All schedules have been omitted because they are not applicable, not material or the required information is set forth in the financial statements or notes thereto.
(a)(3) Exhibits
Listed below are the exhibits which are filed as a part of this Report (according to the number assigned to them in Item 601 of Regulation S-K):
3 -Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws:
3.1
Restated Certificate of Incorporation of the Registrant (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on September 3, 2014 (File No. 001-36603)).
3.2
Amended and Restated Bylaws of the Registrant (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on August 13, 2015 (File No. 001-36603)).
3.3
Certificate of Designations of 8% Series A Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Stock of the Registrant (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 23, 2020 (File No. 001-36603)).
3.4
Certificate of Retirement of 8% Series A Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Stock of the Registrant (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to the Registrant's Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 6, 2021 (File No. 001-36603)).
4 -Instruments Defining the Rights of Securities Holders, including Indentures:
4.1
Specimen Certificate for shares of Series A Common Stock, par value $.01 per share, of the Registrant (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.1 to the Registrant's Registration Statement on Form S-1 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 6, 2014 (File No. 333-195705) (the “S-1”)).
4.2
Specimen Certificate for shares of Series B Common Stock, par value $.01 per share, of the Registrant (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.2 to the S-1).
4.3
Investment Agreement, dated as of March 15, 2020, by and among the Registrant, the investors listed in Schedule I thereto, and solely for the purposes of certain provisions therein, Gregory B. Maffei. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.1 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 16, 2020 (File No. 001-366303) (the “March 2020 8-K”)).
IV-1
4.4
Form of Registration Rights Agreement between the Registrant, Certares Holdings LLC, Certares Holdings (Blockable) LLC and Certares Holdings (Optional) LLC (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.2 to the March 2020 8-K).
4.5
Stock Repurchase Agreement, dated as of March 22, 2021, by and between the Registrant and Certares LTRIP LLC (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 7(f) to Amendment No. 4 to the Registrant’s Schedule 13D in respect of common stock of Tripadvisor, Inc. filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 24, 2021 (File No. 001-36603)).
4.6
Description of the Registrant’s Securities Registered Pursuant to Section 12 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.3 to the Registrant’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 19, 2020 (File. No. 001-36603) (the “2019 Form 10-K”)).
4.7
The registrant undertakes to furnish to the Securities and Exchange Commission, upon request, a copy of all instruments with respect to long-term debt not filed herewith.
10 -Material Contracts:
10.1+
Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings, Inc. 2014 Omnibus Incentive Plan (Amended and Restated as of March 11, 2015) (incorporated by reference to Annex A to the Registrant’s Proxy Statement on Schedule 14A filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 22, 2015 (File No. 001-36603)).
10.2+
Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings, Inc. Transitional Stock Adjustment Plan (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 99.1 to the Registrant’s Registration Statement on Form S-8 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on September 9, 2014 (File No. 333-198649)).
10.3+
Non-Qualified Stock Option Agreement under the Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings, Inc. 2014 Omnibus Incentive Plan for Gregory B. Maffei, effective December 21, 2014 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Registrant’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2015 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on August 13, 2015 (File No. 001-36603)).
10.4
Aircraft Time Sharing Agreements, dated as of November 6, 2015, by and between Liberty Media Corporation and the Registrant (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.9 to the Registrant’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2015 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 18, 2016 (File No. 001-36603) (the “2015 Form 10-K”)).
10.5
Governance Agreement, by and among Tripadvisor, Inc. Liberty Interactive Corporation and Barry Diller, dated as of December 20, 2011 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 99.2 to Qurate Retail, Inc.’s Schedule 13D in respect of common stock of Tripadvisor, Inc., filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on December 30, 2011 (File No. 005-86536)).
10.6
Assignment and Assumption of Governance Agreement, made as of August 12, 2014, by and among the Registrant, Liberty Interactive Corporation and Tripadvisor, Inc. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 7(b) to the Registrant’s Schedule 13D in respect of common stock of Tripadvisor, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on August 29, 2014 (File No. 005-86536)).
10.7
Tax Sharing Agreement, by and between Tripadvisor, Inc. and Expedia, Inc., dated as of December 20, 2011 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit No. 10.2 to Tripadvisor’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on December 27, 2011 (File No. 001-35362)).
10.8
Credit Agreement dated as of June 26, 2015 by and among Tripadvisor, Inc., Tripadvisor Holdings, LLC, Tripadvisor LLC, JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., as Administrative Agent; J.P. Morgan Europe Limited, as London Agent; Morgan Stanley Bank, N.A.; Bank of America, N.A.; BNP Paribas; SunTrust Bank; Wells Fargo Bank, National Association; Royal Bank of Canada; Barclays Bank PLC; U.S. Bank National Association; Citibank, N.A.; The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Ltd.; Goldman Sachs Bank USA; and Deutsche Bank AG New York Branch (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to Tripadvisor’s Current Report on Form 8-K, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on June 30, 2015 (File No. 001-35362)).
IV-2
10.9
First Amendment, dated as of May 12, 2017, by and among Tripadvisor, Inc., Tripadvisor Holdings, LLC, Tripadvisor LLC, the other Subsidiary Loan Parties party thereto, the Lenders party thereto, JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., as administrative agent, and J.P. Morgan Europe Limited, as London agent (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to Tripadvisor’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 15, 2017 (File No. 001-35362)).
10.10
Second Amendment, dated as of May 5, 2020, by and among Tripadvisor, Inc., TripAdvisor Holdings, LLC, Tripadvisor LLC, the other Borrowers party thereto, the Lenders party thereto, JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., as Administrative Agent and London Agent, BofA Securities, Inc., BMO Capital Markets Corp., BNP Paribas Securities Corp., SunTrust Robinson Humphrey, Inc., and U.S. Bank National Association, as Joint Lead Arrangers and Joint Bookrunners; Bank of America, N.A., BMO Capital Markets Corp., BNP Paribas Securities Corp., SunTrust Robinson Humphrey, Inc. and U.S. Bank National Association, as Co-Syndication Agents; and Barclays Bank PLC, Morgan Stanley Senior Funding, Inc. and Wells Fargo Bank, National Association, as Co-Documentation Agents (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Tripadvisor, Inc.’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 7, 2020 (File No. 001-35362)).
10.11
Third Amendment, dated as of December 17, 2020, by and among Tripadvisor, Inc., Tripadvisor Holdings, LLC, Tripadvisor LLC, the other Borrowers party thereto, the Lenders party thereto, JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., as Administrative Agent and London Agent, BofA Securities, Inc., BMO Capital Markets Corp., BNP Paribas Securities Corp., Truist Securities, Inc., and U.S. Bank National Association, as Joint Lead Arrangers and Joint Bookrunners; Bank of America, N.A., BMO Capital Markets Corp., BNP Paribas Securities Corp., Truist Securities, Inc. and U.S. Bank National Association, as Co-Syndication Agents; and Barclays Bank PLC, Morgan Stanley Senior Funding, Inc. and Wells Fargo Bank, National Association, as Co-Documentation Agents (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to Tripadvisor’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on December 22, 2020 (File No. 001-35362)).
10.12
Amendment and Restatement Agreement, dated as of June 29, 2023, to the Credit Agreement dated as of June 26, 2015 (as amended as of May 12, 2017, May 5, 2020 and December 17, 2020, among Tripadvisor, Inc., Tripadvisor Holdings, LLC, Tripadvisor, LLC, and other Borrowers party thereto, the Lenders party thereto and JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., as Administrative Agent (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to Tripadvisor’s Current Report on Form 8-K (File No. 001-35362 filed with the SEC on July 6, 2023)).
10.13
Corporate Headquarters Lease with Normandy Gap-V Needham Building 3, LLC, as landlord, dated as of June 20, 2013 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to Tripadvisor's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2013, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on July 24, 2013 (File No. 001-35362) (the "Tripadvisor 10-Q")).
10.14
Guaranty dated June 20, 2013 by Tripadvisor, Inc. for the benefit of Normandy Gap-V Needham Building 3, LLC, as landlord (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 to the Tripadvisor 10-Q).
10.15
Form of Tripadvisor Media Group Master Advertising Insertion Order (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.23 to Tripadvisor’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2017 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 21, 2018 (File No. 001-35362)).
10.16+
Form of Non-Qualified Stock Option Agreement under the Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings, Inc. 2014 Omnibus Incentive Plan (Amended and Restated as of March 11, 2015) (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.23 to the 2015 Form 10-K).
10.17+
Amendment, dated March 14, 2018, of certain of the Registrant’s incentive plans (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Registrant’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2018 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 9, 2018 (File No. 001-36603)).
10.18
Form of Amended and Restated Indemnification Agreement between the Registrant and its executive officers/directors (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Registrant’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2019 filed on May 7, 2019 (File No. 001-36603)).
IV-3
10.19+
Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings, Inc. 2019 Omnibus Incentive Plan (incorporated by reference to Annex A to the Registrant’s Proxy Statement on Schedule 14A filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 18, 2019 (File No. 001-36603)).
10.20+
Form of Non-Qualified Stock Option Agreement under the Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings, Inc. 2019 Omnibus Incentive Plan (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.18 to the 2019 Form 10-K).
10.21+
Form of Performance-based Restricted Stock Units Award Agreement under the Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings, Inc. 2019 Omnibus Incentive Plan (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.19 to the 2019 Form 10-K).
10.22
Form of Performance-Based Cash Award Agreement under the Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings, Inc. 2019 Omnibus Incentive Plan (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Registrant’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2023 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 3, 2023 (File No. 001-36603) (the “May 2023 Form 10-Q”)).
10.23
Form of Performance-Based Cash Award Agreement between the Registrant and Gregory B. Maffei under the Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings, Inc. 2019 Omnibus Incentive Plan (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 to the May 2023 Form 10-Q).
10.24+
Services Agreement, dated as of August 27, 2014, by and between Liberty Media Corporation and the Registrant (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on September 3, 2014 (File No. 001-36603)).
10.25+
Form of First Amendment to Services Agreement, effective as of December 13, 2019, between Liberty Media Corporation and Qurate Retail, Inc., Liberty Broadband Corporation, GCI Liberty, Inc. and the Registrant (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.21 to the 2019 Form 10-K).
10.26+
Executive Employment Agreement, dated effective as of December 13, 2019, between Liberty Media Corporation and Gregory B. Maffei (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to Liberty Media Corporations’ Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on December 19, 2019 (File No. 001-357047)).
10.27+
Form of Annual Option Award Agreement between the Registrant and Gregory B. Maffei under the Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings, Inc. 2019 Omnibus Incentive Plan (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.3 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on December 19, 2019 (File No. 001-36603) (the “December 2019 8-K”)).
10.28+
Form of Annual Performance-based Restricted Stock Unit Award Agreement between the Registrant and Gregory B. Maffei under the Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings, Inc. 2019 Omnibus Incentive Plan (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.4 to the December 2019 8-K).
10.29+
Form of Upfront Award Agreement between the Registrant and Gregory B. Maffei under the Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings, Inc. 2019 Omnibus Incentive Plan (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.5 to the December 2019 8-K).
10.30
Indenture, dated July 9, 2020, among Tripadvisor, Inc. and the guarantors party thereto and Wilmington Trust, National Association, as trustee (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.1 to Tripadvisor’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on July 9, 2020 (File No. 001-35362) (the “July 2020 8-K”)).
10.31
Form of Senior Note (included in Exhibit 10.28) (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.1 to the July 2020 8-K).
10.32+
Form of Nonqualified Stock Option Agreement under the Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings, Inc. 2019 Omnibus Incentive Plan, as amended from time to time, for certain officers (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.30 to the Registrant’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 19, 2021 (File No. 001-36603) (the “2020 Form 10-K”)).
10.33+
Form of Nonqualified Stock Option Agreement under the Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings, Inc. 2019 Omnibus Incentive Plan, as amended from time to time, for Nonemployee Directors (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.31 to the 2020 Form 10-K).
IV-4
10.34+
Form of Restricted Stock Units Agreement under the Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings, Inc. 2019 Omnibus Incentive Plan, as amended from time to time, for Nonemployee Directors (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.32 to the 2020 Form 10-K).
10.35+
Form of Performance-Based Restricted Stock Units Agreement under the Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings, Inc. 2019 Omnibus Incentive Plan, as amended from time to time, for certain officers (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Registrant’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2021 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 7, 2021 (File No. 001-36603)).
Subsidiaries of Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings, Inc.*
23.1
Consent of KPMG LLP.*
31.1
Rule 13a-14(a)/15d -14(a) Certification.*
31.2
Rule 13a-14(a)/15d -14(a) Certification.*
Section 1350 Certification.**
Liberty Tripadvisor Holdings, Inc. Policy for the Recovery of Erroneously Awarded Compensation*
101.INS
Inline XBRL Instance Document - the instance document does not appear in the Interactive Data File because its XBRL tags are embedded within the Inline XBRL document.*
101.SCH
Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Schema Document.*
101.CAL
Inline XBRL Taxonomy Calculation Linkbase Document.*
101.LAB
Inline XBRL Taxonomy Label Linkbase Document.*
101.PRE
Inline XBRL Taxonomy Presentation Linkbase Document.*
101.DEF
Inline XBRL Taxonomy Definition Document.*
Cover Page Interactive Data File (formatted as Inline XBRL and contained in Exhibit 101).*
* Filed herewith.
** Furnished herewith
+ This document has been identified as a management contract or compensatory plan or arrangement.