JCOM 2300: Expedia trying to stand out

When I book hotels and other vacation plans online I don't really consider the travel sites very different. They all have the same prices and my feel is that they have about the same relationship with the hotels and airlines. The said industries don't really care what travel site books their rooms and flights just as long as they get booked.

Expedia.com has figured this out and has just entered into a PR contract with HL Group. The approach is I think is simple and very cleaver. They want to get articles published in papers like the New York Times and the Los Angeles Times that highlight the differences that  characterize Expedia.com from any one of the other dozen online travel sites. 

The one thing I am weary of at least from trying to promote Expedia through PR methods are making the differences really matter. Off the top of my head I can't think of a clear difference between Expedia and Orbitz or any of the other travel sites. If you want to have the publicity and the articles written the differences that you cite better be clear, and convincing.