WASHINGTON --
Cendant Corp.s Hotel Group signed a non-binding letter of intent
with Marriott International to acquire the Ramada International
Hotels & Resorts brand. Should the deal clear approval by
regulatory authorities, it would complete Cendants acquisition of
Ramada.
In April, Cendant
exercised an option to buy out its interest in a joint venture that
trademarks and licenses the Ramada and Days Inn hotel brands in the
U.S. from Marriott for $200 million.
The transaction
would unite the Ramada brand as a worldwide entity under a single
company and further demonstrate Cendant Hotel Groups commitment to
the brand, said Steven Rudnitsky, Cendant Hotel Group Chairman and
CEO.
Marriott acquired
the rights to Ramada through an acquisition in 1997. It licensed
the Ramada name to Cendant in the U.S. for use in lodging and
timeshare operations under existing long-term agreements. In March
2002, the two companies formed a joint venture called Two Flags
that licensed the trademarks for Ramada and Days Inn in the
U.S.
Ramada encompasses
204 hotels that are franchises under the Ramada Plaza, Ramada
Hotels, Ramada Resorts and Ramada Encore brands in the U.K.,
Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Caribbean, Central America,
South America, the Asia-Pacific region, Australia and Mexico. The
Cendant Hotel Group licenses the rights to the Ramada brand in
Canada.
To contact
the reporter who wrote this article, send e-mail to Michael
Milligan at [email protected].