Finally, Diller Gets the Message

In spinning off the travel units, IAC's boss is accepting the Street's wisdom: For the stock to rise, the unwieldily outfit must shrink

Provide news feedback or report an error

Confidential tip?

Send a tip to our reporters

Site feedback:

Take our Survey

December 23, 2004 at 5:00 AM UTC

This article is for subscribers only.

By Timothy J. Mullaney

Wall Street turned skeptical on IAC/InterActiveCorp (IACI ), Barry Diller's Web conglomerate, almost from the day in 2003 when he stitched together an additional $9 billion in acquisitions. Diller had grand ideas: By marrying the growth engines of Expedia and Hotels.com to IAC's profitable but not-too-exciting assets like the HSN cable shopping channel and Ticketmaster, he figured he could build a Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-A ) of e-commerce. Instead, IAC stock has fallen about 37% from July, 2003, (when it traded at around $43 a share), as investors and analysts focused on disappointing gross margins in the hotel-room business.