Close on the heels of Orbitz. com's December 21 decision to stop selling tickets for American Airlines, online travel company Expedia announced a similar move on Saturday, saying that it had failed to reach a new distribution agreement with the Fort Worth-based carrier.

The struggle has been on for months between American Airlines and its online partners to agree terms, in the face of their expiring contracts. Since American intends reducing the payments, the sites have been pushed to a situation whereby it appears better to them to connect directly with the carrier's own computers instead of using intermediaries called global distribution systems.

The disagreements between American and the two leading travel websites clearly set the stage for a crotchety year; more so as the contracts between other airlines and websites are also expiring, and the "full-content" agreements between the carriers and GDSs - like Travelport and Sabre Holdings - also on the verge of running out.

Meanwhile, in their publicity campaigns, Expedia and its peers have accused American Airlines of trying to make it increasingly difficult for consumers to make price comparisons on third party websites and purchase the most affordable tickets.

In a statement, Expedia said: "American Airlines' direct connect model is of questionable, if any, benefit to travellers, would be costly to build and maintain and would compromise travel agents' ability to provide travellers with the best selection."