Airbnb inventory is coming to corporate booking channels. Concur and Flight Centre this summer went public with their plans. Amadeus is considering if and how to link its booking tool. Airbnb’s self-reported data shows rapid growth even before these integrations. Anecdotal reports indicate increased corporate acceptance. Concur in July said “in the coming months” it would integrate Airbnb… Read More »
Airbnb’s continued buildout of corporate travel capabilities has awoken the sleepy serviced apartments sector. New investment capital supports startups for bookings, sourcing and property management. Traditional operators are creating their own distribution platforms. Design norms are shifting along with client expectations for something interesting. Useful for relocation, internships, project work, insurance services and emergencies, serviced apartments and variations… Read More »
Travel management sources said British Airways parent IAG should go back to the drawing board on recently discussed alternatives to its surcharge program, due to take effect Nov. 1. An IAG official offered no comment on news that the firm is in the market talking to travel management companies about an incentive program not unlike the one described… Read More »
Sabre’s new leadership is remaking the company. At the start of this month, they attributed a decision to lay off approximately 900 people to a desire to become faster and more efficient. They’re attacking overhead. They’re streamlining products in the division housing airline reservations and related systems. Sometimes stocks go up on news about layoffs. Not this time.… Read More »
When American Airlines announced its alternative distribution program, one of the connectivity options it endorsed was to use third-party aggregators. These would be companies certified by AA for processing offers and orders in accordance with the International Air Transport Association’s New Distribution Capability. At the industry level, IATA has certified six aggregators for that. They include two that achieved… Read More »
American Express Global Business Travel will use ground transportation platform Mozio to offer clients a range of options through an agent portal, the KDS booking tool and the GBT mobile app. Mozio also works with Carlson Wagonlit Travel, which owns a piece of the five-year-old marketplace of roughly 3,000 transport providers. Inventory includes public transit systems, black cars and… Read More »
Boston – Travel management professionals agree that to be effective, new airline distribution programs need to offer at least as much functionality as existing systems do. Based on expert commentary at last week’s Global Business Travel Association convention here, it would appear that a solution to be welcomed by all key parties is a ways off. Dozens of speakers… Read More »
[UPDATE, Aug. 5, 2017: Concur pushed back to Sept. 16 its simplification of the TripLink user permission process.] [CORRECTION, July 31, 2017: The original version of this article mischaracterized improvements in the TripLink on-boarding process, suggesting travelers do not need to agree to connect their loyalty programs with their Concur profiles. They do still need to permit that… Read More »
It’s well known that lodging is a strategic driver for travel management companies. Mobile is a key vehicle. American Express Global Business Travel next month in the United Kingdom will add hotel booking and chat to its Amex GBT mobile app. The move furthers a hotel strategy that recently included the integration of Booking.com content, according to American… Read More »
You generally will not see interviews published here, but an opportunity that came up last week made an exception worthwhile. What follows are excerpts of separate interviews with top executives at the three largest travel management companies. We spoke by phone with American Express Global Business Travel president Philippe Chérèque last Monday, Carlson Wagonlit Travel president and CEO… Read More »