With Hertz announcing today that it intends to acquire Dollar Thrifty in a $1.2 billion cash-stock deal, the two companies will face some tech-integration pain.
Hertz, which would see its U.S. market share climb to 23% from its current 16%, has identified $180 million in synergies to be achieved within 18 months after the deal closes.
Some of the synergies would come from trimming overlapping IT systems and future capital spending, Hertz says.
Other areas for savings include procurement, fleet-sharing and public company costs since both car-rental companies are publicly traded.
HP manages much of Dollar Thrifty's IT infrastructure, including network management and applications development.
So it remains to be seen how a Hertz-Dollar Thrifty merger may impact that end of the business for HP.
Combing the two car rental companies will increase Hertz's presence in Europe and other international markets, provide a mid-tier offering and give Hertz instant penetration into off-airport locations.
News of the merger probably did not lead to standing ovations at global distribution system companies and online travel agencies.
That's because inevitably with these sorts of major-brand travel industry mergers, future media revenue for GDSs and OTAs from a combined Hertz-Dollar Thrifty will be less than when the two car-rental firms operated as standalone companies.