Orbitz Company

Blending commerce with politics, Orbitz Worldwide has launched a campaign to reverse a law that prohibits travel to Cuba for most U.S. citizens and green-card holders. Through the Open Cuba website, visitors can petition the White House, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and members of Congress to eliminate the Kennedy-era trade and travel restrictions. U.S. airlines and cruise and tour operators are eager to launch travel to the Caribbean's largest island.

McDonald's Corp., the world's largest restaurant company, posted October sales that beat some analysts' estimates after U.S. consumers, pinched by rising food bills and unemployment, bought double cheeseburgers and other $1 items. Global sales at restaurants open at least 13 months climbed 8.2%, paced by Europe's gain of 9.8% compared with a year earlier. U.S. same-store sales increased 5.3%, the Oak Brook, Ill., company said. The Oct.

Orbitz Worldwide Inc., the online travel agency owned by buyout firm Blackstone Group, raised $510 million in an initial share sale Thursday. The Chicago-based company sold 34 million shares at $15 each, less than the range it forecast this month. The stock will begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange today under the symbol OWW. Blackstone, the website's owner for 11 months through its Travelport Ltd. unit, took Orbitz public to capitalize on a surge in global travel.

Shares of Orbitz Worldwide Inc., the online travel agency controlled by buyout firm Blackstone Group, fell more than 3% on Friday in their trading debut. The stock lost 50 cents to $14.50. The firm sold 34 million shares Thursday for $15 each, below the range it had planned. Blackstone has been the website's owner for 11 months through its Travelport Ltd. unit, which still owns 60% of Orbitz's stock.

Early this month, Orbitz launched a beta version of Traveler Update, updates.orbitz.com, a networking site for the nation's fliers. It could help travelers navigate 45 of the nation's airports. What's hot: You get real-time security wait times, traffic, average flight delays and more delivered on your computer, cellphone or PDA. What's not: Not all info is helpful -- the generic "lots of activity" at Tom Bradley Terminal was followed by, "All international flights are on time." Huh? -- vani.

Online travel agency Orbitz Worldwide, which became publicly traded in July, had a thirdquarter net loss of $32 million, or 38 cents a share, compared with a loss of $9 million a year earlier. Excluding items, including a $32-million initial public offering-related charge, Orbitz said it earned $43 million, or 23 cents a share, compared with the $35 million that analysts were expecting, according to Reuters Estimates. Orbitz said its third-quarter travel bookings increased 11% to $2.6 billion.

Travel and real estate company Cendant Corp. is close to an agreement to buy online travel site Orbitz Inc. for about $1.2 billion in cash, a source close to the talks said Tuesday. In a deal that could be announced as early as this morning, Orbitz would change hands for about $28 a share, a 35% premium to its closing share price of $20.77 on Tuesday on Nasdaq. Both companies' boards of directors were to meet Tuesday evening to consider approval of the deal, the source said.

Orbitz Inc., the Internet travel agency that is being bought by Cendant Corp., posted a 30% jump in third-quarter profit, aided by a surge in hotel business. Chicago-based Orbitz said net income rose to $5.1 million, or 12 cents a share, from $3.9 million, or 10 cents a share, a year ago. The most recent quarter included several one-time items: a noncash charge of $1.4 million for restructuring; $4.2 million in expenses from the Cendant deal; and a $967,000 reversal of tax-related expenses.

The Justice Department announced Thursday that it was closing its antitrust investigation of the Orbitz online travel service after finding no evidence that the company stifled competition. R. Hewitt Pate, assistant attorney general for the antitrust division, said investigators concluded that Orbitz would not trigger higher air fares, nor would it become the dominant method of online airline ticket distribution.