Priceline OpenTable: Travel Booking Site Pays $2.6 Billion For A Seat At The Restaurant Business

Priceline Group Inc. (NASDAQ:PCLN) will buy OpenTable Inc. (NASDAQ:OPEN) in a $2.6 billion cash deal announced Friday, giving the budget travel booking site a seat at the restaurant reservation table. Its bid of $103 per share is 46 percent higher than the OpenTable closing price on Thursday. San Francisco-based OpenTable has partnerships with more than 31,000 restaurants around the U.S. It collects a monthly fee in exchange for seating more than 15 million diners every month who book their seat...