Expedia Given Option to Buy Web Travel Firm

USA Networks Inc. is giving Expedia Inc. a two-year option to buy National Leisure Group Inc., another Internet travel company, for the same price USA Networks is paying, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing.

USA Networks agreed last month to buy a controlling interest in Expedia, which also gets the option to buy a one-third interest in USA Networks’ travel channel and the right to advertise on the media company’s channels for five years, Expedia said in the filing.

Exercising the two-year National Leisure Group option “gives us control of NLG,” said Marj Charlier, Expedia’s director of investor relations.