Expedia provides travel services on the Internet. 2002 was an important year for Expedia as it reported positive operating income after three years of operating losses. In the first quarter of 2001, Expedia reported an operating loss of $19 million on sales revenue of $57 million. In the first quarter of 2002, sales revenue had more than doubled to $116 million, and Expedia had operating income of $18 million. Assume that fixed costs were the same in 2002 as in 2001.
1. Compute the operating expenses for Expedia in the first quarter of 2001. In the first quarter of 2002.
2. Determine the cost function for Expedia, that is, the total fixed cost and the variable cost as a percentage of sales revenue. Use the same form as equation (1) on page 100.
3. Explain how Expedia's operating income could increase by $37 million with an increase in sales of $59 million, while it had an operating loss of $19 million on its $57 million of sales in the first quarter of 2001.