As a percentage of airline passengers boarded globally, those who booked via global distribution systems in the years leading up to the pandemic roughly equaled those who booked directly with carriers. That changed when corporate travel all but evaporated. Leisure travelers booking on airline websites took a greater share, and the balance isn’t back. Whether…
American Express Global Business Travel continues to charge clients an extra $10 for bookings made with Southwest Airlines even though the carrier expanded its participation in global distribution systems. According to the world’s largest travel management company, a substantial number of Southwest fares and related services that clients want require extra work. Officials at the…
In its move to two travel management companies and one global distribution system, $67 billion multinational manufacturing conglomerate Siemens focused on the traveler experience. Some corporations that establish agreements with GDS providers do so for economic reasons. “Incentives were clearly not the driver in this change,” according to an email this week from Siemens head…
Travelport this year will build out a new application programming interface, a cloud-based agent desktop and air and hotel contract optimization systems for agencies as part of an overall move toward a “single, next-generation platform,” according to CEO Greg Webb. “We have a set of key features that over the next 18 months come out…
Hailed as a solution for the challenges of fare unbundling, NDC has been in development for nine years. What does it have to show for corporate clients? A rebundled fare, theoretical savings, “whatnot” and “whatever.” Oh, and new distribution fees. “So, nothing new or innovative,” according to former Sabre executive Martin Cowley. Cowley got into…
At the end of 2020, Sabre and Southwest Airlines announced they had come to terms on a “full participation” agreement. Some might not be clear on how that differs from the notion of “full content,” a pillar of airline-global distribution system agreements for going on 18 years that could be on the outs. Before jurisdictions…
Short’s Travel Management sold its corporate portfolio to Direct Travel for an undisclosed sum. Short’s retains its athletic travel management business line. In a Tuesday message to customers, Short’s CEO David LeCompte cited the “many unknowns” facing corporate travel as a reason for the sale. He highlighted an alignment of values, as well as Direct’s…
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