Wednesday, September 17, 2008

TripAdvisor asks users to vote on $1M donation recipients

By Mass High Tech Staff

Newton-based online travel review site TripAdvisor has agreed to donate $1 million to travel-related non-profit organizations and, in the spirit of the election season, will allow the general public to determine how much each group will receive.

The philanthropic initiative, called “More than Footprints,” will split the $1 million among five organizations: Conservation International, Doctors Without Borders, the National Geographic Society, The Nature Conservancy and Save the Children. While consumers and site visitors will be able to influence how the funds are distributed, each participating non-profit is guaranteed $50,000.

Voting, which is accessible on the company’s website, will be open through November 9, 2008, with the results being announced on November 12. Each person will be able to vote once, but officials are encouraging voters to refer friends to support their favorite organization.

The TripAdvisor Media Network, which is operated by TripAdvisor LLC and owned by Expedia Inc. attracts more than 32 million monthly visitors across 12 travel brands, including TripAdvisor, Airfarewatchdog.com, Smartertravel.com, Travelpod.com and Virtualtourist.com.

Founded in 2000, TripAdvisor was acquired by travel giant Expedia in 2004.