Author: Jay Campbell

Before starting The Company Dime with David Jonas in 2014, journalist Jay Campbell a decade earlier created travel business newsletter The Beat. In 2006, Jay co-founded Travel Procurement magazine and in 2010 helped integrate them with Business Travel News. He served as BTN's editorial director until 2013. Jay made his travel industry media debut in 1993 at the Air Travel Journal of Boston while earning his undergraduate degree in journalism at Boston University. He would be happy to connect on LinkedIn. He's here at CorporateTravel.social on Mastodon.

Delta Names New Distribution Partners As Sabre Deal Comes Due

Delta Air Lines during a Thursday virtual meeting named the tech partners it would work with on a customer service-oriented distribution strategy based on IATA’s New Distribution Capability protocols. Accelya, ARC and Google will support Delta as it collaborates with corporate travel intermediaries on new distribution methods. The announcement comes as Delta’s agreement with Sabre is due for renewal. According…

Travel Management Companies Race To Meet AA’s NDC Targets, Sort Out Client Fees

[CORRECTION: When published, this article incorrectly stated the effective date on which new rules will apply for AA tickets to earn miles. It is May 1.] For some travel management companies and their corporate clients, the American Airlines program restricting the conditions under which business travelers earn miles, announced on Feb. 20, sparked more frenzy…

World Travel Inc. Gets Productivity Boost From New AI Firm Acai Travel

Starting with automating email routing and responses, World Travel Inc. is using artificial intelligence from startup Acai Travel to restructure its customer support operation. Reduced average handling time means faster service for clients. The travel management company estimated a 4 percent increase in productivity “off the bat,” said new WTI president Erika Moore. Acai Travel CEO Riccardo Vittoria, who co-founded…

Bizly Gets Cash For AI-Backed Meetings Mgmt. From JetBlue Ventures, Other Investors

Corporate meetings tech provider Bizly this month entered what its founder called a new chapter with funding of an undisclosed amount anchored by existing shareholder JetBlue Ventures. Fermont Capital, Frontier Ventures and H. Barton Asset Management also participated. They’re buying into a vision for artificial intelligence-powered meetings management. The new strategy followed soul-searching sparked by a large travel management company’s…

American Express GBT CEO Abbott: CWT Acqusition Targets Non-Customer Costs

American Express Global Business Travel announced Monday it agreed to pay about $570 million to buy CWT using stock and cash on hand. The companies expect the deal to close in the second half of this year, subject to regulatory approvals in multiple jurisdictions and the satisfaction of other closing conditions. If it does, GBT’s pro forma 2024 revenue would…

Are Offline Transactions More Lucrative For Travel Management Companies? No, But …

AmTrav CEO Jeff Klee caused a stir with a Jan. 29 column in which he relayed an anecdote about a customer of a large travel management company hearing from a travel advisor that their “booking tool withholds some flight options on purpose in order to drive more revenue from phone calls.”  Reactions from multiple executive-level TMC sources ranged between confused…

Notebook: Government Travel Pros Treated To Latest On Innovation, Sustainability

Alexandria, Va. – Amid a federal government solicitation process putting the management of upwards of $4 billion in annual travel spending up for grabs, the National Defense Transportation Association’s GovTravels conference attracted a record 1,100 attendees here last month.  The U.S. General Services Administration has begun collecting information from interested travel and expense tech vendors as part of the ETSNext…

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