<div id="subtitle">Analyst Says Online Booking Fees Appear to Be Up; Predicts Gains for Expedia and Orbitz</div><div><p>Higher booking fees at Expedia Inc. and Orbitz Worldwide Inc. may mean better margins for the online travel companies, according to one analyst.</p><p>Thomas Weisel Partners analyst Jake Fuller said online travel sites appear to have quietly boosted booking fees on airline tickets.</p><p>Specifically, Fuller surveyed ticket prices recently and found that booking fees rose at Expedia, Travelocity and Orbitz. Fuller said investors have been wondering how sustainable these fees are, especially since Priceline.com Inc. dropped the charge.</p><p>"Investors have long worried that fees would dwindle over time as travelers flocked to the lower-priced airline sites to save on the fee," Fuller wrote in a client note.</p><p>But higher fees may yield stronger margins for Expedia and Orbitz.</p><p>"Fee increases should bolster confidence in Expedia and at Orbitz, in particular, given its reliance on that income source," Fuller wrote.</p><p>Fuller has an "Overweight" rating on Expedia and Orbitz, and a "Market Weight" rating on Priceline.com.</p><img src="http://admatch-syndication.mochila.com/images/ad.gif?aid=17444092&bid=informcom" /></div><div id="copyright"><div>

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