Tripadvisor begins brand transformation with new course for Viator, executive shakeup

As it prepares to mark 20 years in business next month, Tripadvisor is embarking on a dramatic realignment aimed at helping the company preserve profitability and spur new growth as it deals with competition from Google and others and with evolving preferences from travelers. The Viator brand, which Tripadvisor acquired for $200 million in 2014, will now operate independent of Tripadvisor Experiences, with its own marketing, product and engineering teams. In a memo sent to employees after markets closed today, co-founder and CEO Steve Kaufer says this will “give Viator the opportunity to grow its brand and business offerings as a leading Experiences OTA.”