IAC Split Official

NEW YORK, August 22: Barry
Diller’s IAC/InterActiveCorp has completed its spin-off of cable shopping
network HSN, Ticketmaster, Interval Leisure Group and Tree.com as separate
publicly traded companies, a move intended to give each more focus and value.

“Armed with outstanding
management teams, appropriate capital structures and their own currencies,
HSNi, Ticketmaster, Interval and Tree.com are now ready for independent
futures…while the Internet businesses that make up new IAC can operate with a
collective purpose and common goals," said Diller, the chairman and CEO of
IAC. "The work is done and our focus now is moving forward."

In their first
day of separate trading, HSN experienced the biggest gain, up 21.25 percent
($2.68 per share) to $15.29 each. Travel company Interval Leisure was up 12.5
percent ($1.76) to $15.88; online ticketing outfit Ticketmaster rose $1.45 per
share to $23.09; and Tree.com (formerly LendingTree) grew 4 cents per share to
$7.46. IAC—which is left as a
collection of more than 35 Internet companies, including search engine Ask.com,
dating site Match.com and online invitation service Evite—was up 8 percent ($1.27) to $16.63.

The split comes after a
legal battle that emerged with John Malone’s Liberty Media, which tried to
block the IAC separation. Malone originally opposed the move, arguing that it
would dilute his voting control of the company, which Liberty has a 30-percent
stake in. Malone lifted his opposition in May, and the two were able to agree
on new terms of board representation, among other actions.

—By Kristin
Brzoznowski