No fanfare or redirecting to alternative places to book a hotel – Octopus Travel, a name synonymous with the early days of travel on the web for consumers, is no more.
The brand’s masters (now Kuoni, after its sale within the GTA business by Travelport in March 2011) closed the consumer-facing websites of Octopus last week, telling visitors that existing bookings would be honoured but that essentially it was the end of its B2C operations.
Reassuringly for consumers, Octopus says the move is the result of a strategic decision by Kuoni and not due to any financial difficulties.
Read full story at: http://www.tnooz.com/2012/11/26/news/farewell-octopus-travel-consumer-brand-axed-as-kuoni-focuses-on-b2b/