Most recent updates first…

Thursday 9 February 2012:

• Travelport and Bangkok Airways agree new multi-year distribution agreement. The deal gives Galileo and Worldspan-connected agents access to fares and inventory from the regional carrier, operating on 20 domestic and international routes.
• Amadeus and Conferma unite to launch automated hotel payment service. The billback support system, powered by Conferma, automates the need for travel managers to manually process hotel payments when booking through Amadeus.
• Vayant goes sub-second with new flight search technology
• Have travel agents been left high and dry by mobile?
• Who is driving evolution of business travel technology? The end-user, not tech companies
• Personality crisis: Am I an airline or a travel retailer?

Monday 6 February 2012:

• Sabre introduces an Eco-Certified Hotel Programme for the GDS. The system works by highlighting more than 4,700 hotels which are certified by globally recognised bodies as being “environmentally-responsible”. Sabre systems Red and Hotel RFP will be displaying the mark to 180,000 and 2,000 users respectively.  Sabre says it will “hold the line” against so-called greenwashing by accommodation providers by only including hotels in the system which have been audited for their eco-friendliness against Global Sustainable Tourism Council guidelines.
• Gullivers founder David Babai returns with group trip wholesaler G2 Travel
• Travelport debuts ViewTrip mobile trip management tool in UK, global roll-out to follow
• Asia hotel prices – February to April 2012

Friday 3 February 2012:

• Amadeus brings in former Wyndham executive to become vice president of hotels. Jeff Edwards will be charged with expanding the Amadeus hnotel division, covering both distribution and IT services. Prior to Wyndham, where he was chief information officer and EVP of distribution, Edwards was president and CEO of Micros Fidelio. He joins the new business wing of Amadeus alongside Thomas Drexler for rail and John Jarrell for airport IT.
• Guestmob uses Big Data to try and reinvent the opaque hotel booking model
• Bespoke travel trend pushes payment out of traditional reservation systems
• New distribution channels – Google Travel, Facebook, Apple and … Pinterest?

Wednesday 1 February 2012:

• Amadeus has bought airline strategy consultancy Airconomy. The deal, for an undisclosed fee, sees the Frankfurt-based company run as a separate business incubator to “develop ideas for new market intelligence reports”. The acquisition follows a deal struck with Airconomy in July 2010 to launch business intelligence platform to help carriers plan and develop networks.
• Travelport research shows agent confusion in airline ancillary market
• Five of the most important things every travel brand should be doing right now
• Europe rail distribution evolving as SilverRail and Pharos Datacom sign big deals
• Amadeus outage hit other GDSs as airline systems crashed

Previous GDS updates:

• GDS news from Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus – January 2012
• GDS news from Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus – December 2011
• GDS news from Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus – November 2011
• GDS news from Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus – October 2011
• GDS news from Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus – September 2011
• GDS news: Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus – August 2011
• GDS news: Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus – July 2011
• Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus briefs – June 2011
• Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus briefs – May 2011
• Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus briefs – April 2011
• Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus briefs – March 2011
• Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus briefs – February 2011
• Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus briefs – January 2011
• Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus briefs – December 2010
• GDS Bitesize – January 2010 to November 2010

ViewTrip is an existing desktop service for Travelport-connected customers, but the latest incarnation has been developed solely for Android and iPhone mobile devices.

ViewTrip Mobile is essentially a mobile travel concierge service which will be made available via travel agencies, primarily in the corporate travel sector.

Travelport CIO Mark Ryan first hinted that a mobile version of ViewTrip was in development in January this year.

Tools included on the service range from live flight alerts and updates and airport/city guides to GPS-enabled amenity and service finding tools (such as restaurants) and a currency converter.

But clearly the main element of the app is the management service, allowing users to add and edit travel arrangements from their handset.

Travelport’s ViewTrip Mobile joins the likes of the Mobile Travel Assistant from Amadeus and TripCase/GetThere mobile products through Sabre.

Travelport is introducing its effort in the UK first, with other countries expected to come on-board from the second quarter of 2012.

Corporate travel agency Chelsea Travel Management was involved in a testing programme for the tool, labelling it “one of the richest apps of its kind”.

Most recent statement from Amadeus:

“Minimising such incidents and their impact on our customers is very important to Amadeus.

“During the incident, our priority was to return to normal service as quickly as possible; once it closed we focused on identifying the cause and analysing actions we could take to avoid reoccurrence. The cause of the problem appears to be a network component.

“We are continuing to investigate this in detail. Once again, we regret the inconvenience this incident may have caused.”

ORIGINAL:

The extent of a significant technology failure at Amadeus yesterday is beginning to unravel, as other systems across the industry are now known to have been affected.

Amadeus is remaining tight-lipped as to what triggered such a major collapse, when an outage which lasted a number of hours managed to hit passenger self check-in and reservation systems, agency bookings as well as airport counter systems.

A post on the Amadeus blog this morning said the incident had been fully resolved, with an apology for the inconvenience. Officials will not disclose the nature and size of the outage.

It is understood that although Amadeus customers were hit by the problems, other GDSs were also impacted as the Amadeus airline IT system ALTEA was involved.

ALTEA currently powers over 100 airlines around the world, including British Airways, Qantas, Iberia and Cathay Pacific.

Although it is an Amadeus-run platform, agencies on other distribution networks such as Sabre and Travelport which were trying to connect to some of the airlines involved were also unable to carry out fare queries or make bookings.

A number of insiders across the GDSs have confirmed that the outage was far bigger than initially thought given that the ALTEA system effectively controls how agencies on other networks connect to airline reservation systems.

NB: Image via Shutterstock.

Most recent updates first…

Tuesday 31 January 2012:

• Unbundling is evil – there must be a better way
• Virgin Australia and Sabre sign multi-year distribution agreement with Sabre. The deal gives all Sabre-connected leisure and business agents access to all Virgin Australia fares and inventory, including ancillary products. Virgin Australia has also upgraded to Sabre’s AdvanceConnect system.
• Travelport announces launch of service to allow booking of pre-paid bags on Cimber Sterling flights. Travelport-connected agents will be able to use the service immediately. The Danish airline operates over 1,000 flights per week and carries 2.5 million passengers a year on its domestic and European network.
• Amadeus technology outage hits major airline systems and agency bookings
• Tnooz-BCD Travel FREE Webinar: Getting in sync – Tools for communicating with business travelers

Monday 30 January 2012:

• Amadeus calls on rail industry to adopt “shared approach” to developing IT systems. The Back On Track report by Professor James Woudhuysen argues that the rail industry has been held back by legacy IT systems and should therefore consider adopting next generation IT solutions, similar to those used by airlines. “The concept of an outsourced community platform, a shared system used by rival rail companies to manage customer processing, means rail companies would benefit from the latest technology whilst remaining free to innovate and differentiate,” the reports says. “This approach would see the rail experience transformed, allowing for personalised journeys, the selling of ancillary services and multiple options for ticketing.”
• FairSearch blasts Google Flight Search ad model as online travel group enlists

Thursday 26 January 2012:

• Amadeus signs four-year distribution agreement with Travix mega-group. The deal covers the portfolio of Travix brands such as CheapTickets, Vliegwinkel.nl, Flugladen, BudgetAir, Vayama and Easytobook. The Amadeus Extreme Search system is also included as part of agreement.
• With Google, Apple and Facebook on the prowl, will hotels lose even more control of distribution?
• Is it time for a global HotelWiki to assist the industry (and consumers) with hotel distribution?

Wednesday 25 January 2012:

• Travelport signs major agreement with Satguru Travel & Tourism to expand operations in Africa. The partnership is said to be the largest of its kind signed by Travelport and gives it 16 new country distributor agreements across the continent, growing its existing network from 27 to 41 and extending GDS operations in a further two. National distributor centres for Travelport will run in the following countries: Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Southern Sudan and Togo. Existing Satguru ecommerce tools will be made available to customers as part of the deal.
• North American hotel prices – January to March 2012

Monday 23 January 2012:

• Amadeus signs Memorandum of Understanding with the European Commission to promote travel between Europe and South America. The agreement is part of a wider scheme to increase traffic to other regions around the world during low seasons by utilising spare airline and accommodation capacity. The programme will encourage airlines that are ready to offer fare concessions through travel agencies and tour operators that would organise relevant travel packages, as well as with the European Commission.

Saturday 21 January 2012:

• Travelport has tapped Amadeus for senior executive Gilles Mascaras who joins as vice president for channel strategy and pricing. Mascaras will be responsible for identifying and prioritising markets, channels and customer groups for Travelport GDS products and services.  Mascaras had a 19-year career at Amadeus and was most recently ran the global online travel agencies and large leisure travel agents group.
• Priceline has successfully integrated Travelport‘s 360 Fares system. The global fares and pricing system powers all fares and pricing transactions for Travelport’s global distribution systems.
• Travelport announces three-year agreement with global IT outsourcing company Stefanini. The new partnership continues an existing agreement for Stefanini to provide Travelport with multi-lingual customer help desk services to its global distribution system and Galileo customers in Asia, alongside existing global Worldspan customers and Galileo customers in Europe.
• Why the mechanics behind travel distribution will blow your mind
• Travelport: IPO still a consideration, admits mistakes made with introduction of Agility
• Can a global distribution system be cool?
• Amadeus strengthens hotel offering via HRS distribution deal

Tuesday 17 January 2012:

• Travelport and TAP Portugal agree to extend distribution agreement. The deal gives all Travelport-connected agents around the world full access to TAP’s fares and classes. The pair have also agreed to work on a number of strategic projects including development of merchandising and group booking systems.
• Siri the mobile travel agent [VIDEO]

Saturday 14 January 2012:

• Start of American Airlines-Sabre antitrust case extended two months.
• Travel technology steady hand test [GAME].
• Financial analysts downplay Room Key threat to Expedia and Priceline.

Thursday 12 January 2012:

• Sabre identifies government regulation of airport security, emissions and taxes as one of the top issues affecting airlines. The bi-annual survey found fuel prices (81%), government regulations (72%) and airport security (59%) as the key challenges for the aviation sector. Issues having a positive impact included revenue/yield (81%), customer loyalty (81%) and IT investment (76%), according to executive at 80 regional and global airlines across the world.
• Room Key: Open to all, will lower hotel distribution costs, features and marketing to come
• Hotel giants come together to launch Room Key search site
• Amadeus report shows travellers willing to trade personal information for less travel stress
• US rejects delay request from global airlines on bag fee transparency
• Practical application of semantic technology and personalization in travel

Tuesday 10 January 2012:

• Amadeus signs distribution deal with Travelodge. The agreement gives Amadeus-connected agents access to 490 properties on the Travelodge portfolio in the UK, Ireland and Spain. Travelodge will also be included in the Amadeus Selling Platform and Hotel Plus tools. Travelodge aims to double its number of properties by 2020.
• Tnooz-Tealeaf FREE Webinar: Understanding the challenges of the multi-channel travel booker
• Airports – the new frontier for travel loyalty services
• Middle East hotel prices – January to March 2012

Thursday 5 January 2012:

• Big Data and the infinite possibilities for the travel industry
• What else? Web usage report, AMR delisted, ARC chairman, Cheapflights ticked off
• Why you need to care about travel technology, semantic web and ontology

Tuesday 3 January 2012:

• Amadeus launches Hotel Optimisation Package system for leisure and business travel agencies. The system has a number of services including the LinkHotel service, 50,000 properties from the likes of Transhotel, as well as a multi-GDS Business Intelligence platform to handle pricing and contracting with hotels.
• Travelport makes changes to Agility package for agencies in Americas
• Travel technology in 2011 – most popular, most commented and other highlights on Tnooz
• Big shuffle in the world of hotel marketing and distribution in 2012

NB: Image via Shutterstock.

Previous GDS updates:

• GDS news from Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus – December 2011
• GDS news from Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus – November 2011
• GDS news from Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus – October 2011
• GDS news from Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus – September 2011
• GDS news: Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus – August 2011
• GDS news: Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus – July 2011
• Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus briefs – June 2011
• Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus briefs – May 2011
• Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus briefs – April 2011
• Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus briefs – March 2011
• Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus briefs – February 2011
• Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus briefs – January 2011
• Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus briefs – December 2010
• GDS Bitesize – January 2010 to November 2010

Amadeus has its main data centre in Erding, Germany, while Sabre and Travelport‘s are located in the US cities of Tulsa and Atlanta respectively.

Protected like a military establishment, vital given the type of sensitive information running through its digital arteries, Travelport’s Data Center is housed in a rather ugly building (it doesn’t need to be pretty) on the outskirts of the city, close to Hartsfield-Jackson Airport.

The drabness of the exterior masks what is going on inside – over 7,000 physical and virtual servers, for example, are running the travel shopping systems, while eight IBM mainframes are capable of crunching 60,000 million instructions per second.

The facility is mirrored – meaning that there is a double the amount of every piece of hardware to ensure that if something goes wrong, there is a backup of all the data, including passenger name records, fares, routes, availability, etc.

Other factoids chief technology officer David Lauderdale, Travelport’s chief technology officer, likes to throw out on tours of the venue include:

• 35 million+ lines of code supporting the systems.
• More than 9 petabytes of shared data storage.
• 37,000 messages are processed every second.
• Response times for agency customers and the airlines hosted by Travelport are typically less than 300 milliseconds.

The facility contains a dizzying array of different types of technology, each piece of which is replaced or upgraded every 18 months.

The largest hardware project in recent years, Lauderdale explains, was when the company brought its Galileo and Worldspan data centres together under one roof (beginning in 2008) following the acquisition of Worldspan. Galileo was previously located in Denver, Colorado.

The migration was named by Information Week as one of the largest IT project in the US at the time.

But it is control centre which takes the breath away, a moment saved by Lauderdale with a dramatic opening of curtains surrounding a room known as the fishbowl.

The control centre is staffed by just seven people working in three shifts, 24 hours a day. Every piece of kit is monitored constantly for traffic fluctuations, errors and other issues affecting customers.

It is (no hyperbole here) like mission control at Nasa.

The company will consider an IPO “as and when the markets are right”, president and CEO Gordon Wilson confirms, acknowledging that its current private equity owners Blackstone, One Equity Partners and Technology Crossover Ventures will be looking for an exit in the future and a public listing is one option available to it.

Travelport’s last attempt at a public listing began almost two years ago to the day, when it filed documents at the London Stock Exchange, ahead of a similar move in Spain for fellow GDS giant Amadeus.

The plan was scrapped just three weeks later after some European markets started to show signs of weakness as financial problems hit countries such as Greece.

Amadeus eventually proceeded with its IPO in Madrid in April of the same year.

But with Sabre also recently suggesting it would consider a public listing at some point, something Wilson says he would welcome and consider good for the sector, attention is inevitably turning once again to Travelport’s next move.

Such talk is a far cry from just four months ago when Travelport was on the brink of a forced entry into Chapter 11 as it attempted to extend the terms of its debt repayment plan.

It eventually secured – via its parent company Travelport Holdings – an agreement to delay the PIK loan repayment until 2016, a move which Wilson says has “liberated” the business.

“I am no longer talking to them [investors] about the PIK – the debt is behind us,” he says, outlining how the refinancing gave the company some capital for investment in product and services, as well as for potential small acquisitions.

Meanwhile, chief operating officer Kurt Ekert says some lessons have been learned from its recent attempt to launch a new agent desktop platform and introduce fees for services.

Travelport altered some of the terms for its Agility programme in the Americas following an outcry from some agency groups in the US and Canada.

Ekert says the changes were made following “feedback from customers”, but admits with hindsight that they should have been more pro-active with agents (“we would have gotten there first with the new product”) before announcing the introduction of fees.

“We allowed the conversation to be about commercials, when the intent for us was that it was supposed to be about technology,” he says.

However, Ekert believes that its decision to launch the Agility bundle is a sound one and has the right motivation behind it.

He adds: ”We think it is important to pull customers along with new technology, because it is hard to get people to change.”

NB: Image via Shutterstock.

The trial in the district court of Tarrant County, Texas, is now slated to kick off on August 6, 2012, instead of the previously slated date, June 13, 2012.

The effect of the ruling is that the truce in the airline-GDS war will remain in effect for a couple of months longer.

American Airlines and Sabre have been battling on the legal front over antitrust issues, and in the marketplace over a new contract, distribution economics and direct-connect.

Sabre issued a statement about Judge Donald Crosby’s extension ruling, noting that the GDS vendors’ travel agency and corporate customers, as well as consumers using sites such as Travelocity, will have access to American Airlines’ fares through the end of the trial.

Sabre spokeswoman Nancy St. Pierre adds:

  We are disappointed with the extension, as it yet again delays the long-term certainty Sabre’s agency and corporate customers have told us is important and which we are dedicated to achieving. It’s unfortunate that AA has chosen a path of litigation with Sabre, particularly since the airline is now focused on its bankruptcy. Our preference is to negotiate with AA and we continue to call on the airline to work with us to reach a deal that meets the needs of all constituents.

In turn, American Airlines states:

American has always been open to resolving our disputes and entering into a fair, new agreement with Sabre through negotiations. Despite American’s past efforts, we have not been able to reach such a resolution. Because we have discovered that Sabre engaged in serious misconduct in violation of the antitrust laws, however, we intend to pursue our losses, absent an agreed resolution. This is just a brief extension, but it is important to give American breathing room to focus on both its successful restructuring efforts and this lawsuit. As a reminder, American’s current distribution agreement with Sabre will remain in effect until 14 days after the conclusion of the Texas antitrust lawsuit.

The Specialist Holidays Group division of TUI, which counts the likes of ski brand Crystal, Hayes & Jarvis, Sovereign, Thomson Tailormade and Jetsave on its portfolio, is introducing a platform where agents – both in-house and third party retail – can interact with tour operators.

Made possible by creating a network within the Yammer enterprise system, the idea is to give agents up-to-date information from tour operators about products and services, as well as allow them to liaise with officials with any questions they or a customer may have.

SHG claims it is the first of its kind in the UK.

As well as product information, including images and videos of services and other elements of a package trip, selling advice and tips will be streamed through the system.

Incentives and prizes will also be given to those using the Yammer tools.

SHG online director David Jarvis says since mid-December around 60 agents have signed up to the service and are already interacting with providers of packages they are trying to sell.

The network tools give SHG an opportunity to develop stronger relationships with internal and external agents, Jarvis says, but also allows the agents to send feedback to the operators so products can be improved or customised.

“We’re looking to involve agents more in our business and think that social networking is an ideal channel to communicate and get feedback from the trade.”

TUI says it is considering extending the Yammer platform so other suppliers can be included, such as accommodation providers and airlines.

Agents already have a number of similar social networks available to them, but these are provided by the GDSs, such as the Travelport Opinions and Sabre AgentStream platforms.

Most recent updates first…

Thursday 22 December 2011:

• Travelport signs agreements with four agencies in Saudi Arabia. The Galileo distribution and technology deals cover new contracts with Asfar Travels and Global Destination Solutions, as well as extensions to existing agreements with Transcontinental Holidays and Roibek Travel.
• TnoozLIVE – Episode #1: 2011 roundup and 2012 preview [VIDEO]
• Travelport stands firm on introduction of Agility despite pressure from agent groups
• Sabre wraps up billion dollar contract with Etihad Airways

Tuesday 20 December 2011:

• Will airlines with puny profits follow lead of fee-happy Spirit Airlines?
• Three important things the travel industry can teach the world about APIs
• OpenTravel tees up XML schema for golf and other pursuits
• IATA found in breach of regulations over use of PaxIS, Europe data to be removed
• CWT To Go takes online and GDS bookings mobile for road warriors

Thursday 15 December 2011:

• Sabre Travel Network and Glowpoint unite to provide cloud video services as part of the Sabre Virtual Meetings platform. Glowpoint will provide Sabre with its OpenVideo system to give users video bridging and helpdesk support as well as remote monitoring and management tools for the videoconferencing platform.
• Amadeus says over half of its customers in the UK had dealt with clients who had obtained travel advice through social media before consulting a travel agency. The survey also found that four out of ten agencies had yet to integrate social media into their working practices, although 60% are using social media to help with new business.
• Karibu Games wants to bring gaming into the heart of online travel
• Open APIs in travel need to grow up

Tuesday 13 December 2011:

• Travelport signs full content agreement with Austrian Airlines. The renewal of the multi-year deal gives all Galileo and Worldspan-connected agents access to the airline full published fares and availability.
• Sabre Airline Solutions has used to its SabreSonic Customers Sales and Service package to integrate Ethiopian Airlines into the Star Alliance airline network. The partnership allows the airline to offer passengers frequent flyer points across the network of carriers as well as improve data and operational integration.
• What else? Teletext Holidays MBO, Phishing air tickets, HolidayCheck, Fastbooking

Saturday 10 December 2011:

• Sabre is giving something back by raising $1 million for 700 charities around the world. It’s 11th annual fundraising initiative will help organisations in 30 countries and brings the total raised since 2000 to $16 million. Those benefiting include The Starlight Foundation in Asia-Pacific, National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children in Europe, and the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation in North America.
• Sabre litigation, backed by 100 lawyers, could be resolved before American Airlines reorganizes
• The case for a new airline distribution model [INFOGRAPHIC]
• Using semantic technology to create better consumer profiles in travel

Thursday 8 December 2011:

• Where is the consumer interest in a limited Google Flight Search?
• TripIt debuts Kindle Fire apps and videoconferencing appointments
• Why the travel industry should come out from behind the digital curtain and talk to people

Monday 5 December 2011:

• Amadeus and Iberia add to its existing distribution agreement by adding ancillary tools to the airline’s technology platform. The carrier has adopted the Amadeus Ancillary Services tool, as part of a long-term strategy, to initially allow agents to book preferred seats for passengers.
• Jizo claims major distribution first for travel search, opens up Russia
• Open call to all travel companies: Simplify your APIs!

Sunday 4 December 2011:

• Tnooz-Sabre Webinar VIDEO: Mobile and social media – sort the facts from the hype
• Long distance rail passengers crave seamless experience
• Travelport prepares agents for platform overhaul, launches Agility and subscription fees
• Why video conferencing will not kill business travel

Thursday 1 December 2012:

• BMI reaches agreement with Travelport to extend distribution agreement. Worldspan and Galileo-connected agents will have access to BMI’s full published fares and availability.
• LAN Airlines signs full content agreement with Amadeus. The multi-year partnership gives Amadeus-connected agents access to fares, schedules and inventory across the LAN portfolio including carriers in Argentina, Peru, and the LAN Express brand.
• Travelport  extends agreement with RightNow Technologies to cover the travel tech provider’s new Developer Network. RightNow will power the community aspect of the network, allowing users to collaborate, swap ideas and interact with one another.
• Amadeus launches Market Pricing product. The system is part of the Revenue Management suite of tools and combines publicly available rate information from major web rate shoppers and Amadeus itself to give hotel revenue managers a view of the market through price trends, price fluctuations and benchmarks.
• Amadeus takes blame for Qantas check-in system crash
• Tnooz-Travelport Webinar: VIDEO – The hotel shopping dilemma
• Sabre integrating booking, corporate travel features into TripCase mobile offering
• American Airlines parent company files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection

NB: Image via Shutterstock.

Previous GDS updates:

• GDS news from Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus – November 2011
• GDS news from Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus – October 2011
• GDS news from Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus – September 2011
• GDS news: Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus – August 2011
• GDS news: Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus – July 2011
• Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus briefs – June 2011
• Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus briefs – May 2011
• Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus briefs – April 2011
• Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus briefs – March 2011
• Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus briefs – February 2011
• Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus briefs – January 2011
• Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus briefs – December 2010
• GDS Bitesize – January 2010 to November 2010

The global airline representative body was informed by the European Commission on November 25 (but details and confirmation have only emerged this week) that it had breached the CRS Code of Conduct and all European travel agent data must be removed from the PaxIS tool.

PaxIS is a product developed by IATA to provide airline passenger market intelligence and real-time data, covering ticket information on over 400 airlines and captured using the the Billing and Settlement Plan (BSP).

Included in the data is passenger and ticket information from agencies such as fare value, point of origin, connection and destination airport, category or class or seat, etc.

The system, however, rivals the existing MIDT (Marketing Information Data Transfer) platform used by the GDSs, a tool which essentially does the same thing, allowing for in-depth forecasting, planning and revenue management and, once again, uses data from agents.

But herein lies the problem and source of the latest shenanigans.

MIDT, by virtue of it being run by the GDSs, has always come under the auspices of the European Code of Conduct which regulates the role and operations of Amadeus, Travelport and Sabre. This meant that agencies needed to give the GDSs permission to use the data within the system.

IATA did not have to ask permission when it launched PaxIS, namely because it isn’t a GDS and is using the data from within its own BSP system.

The European Commission has now decided otherwise.

The latest twist, however, ends (for the time beging) what has been a two-year investigation by European officials into whether PaxIS (and, by extension, IATA) should be included in the GDS Code of Conduct, a probe which started in June 2009 when the GDS formed a joint complaint, with an additional complaint from some agencies in September 2009.

Following the EC decision in November, IATA has been told to remove data relating to all passengers from European travel agents.

IATA still claims the volume of tickets in the PaxIS database will not be reduced and geographical identification of European ticket sales will remain in the system. The detailed passenger information will be out.

An official says:

“We continue to believe that the European CRS Code of Conduct should not apply to IATA (a trade association) or to its PaxIS product (which derives its data through the BSP system).

“IATA is now working with the European Commission to clarify IATA’s views. Obviously, IATA will comply with all regulations in the jurisdictions within which it operates. IATA is acting in good faith  and currently exploring what  steps need to be taken  for compliance in the short-term.

“In the longer-term we are looking to solutions that will allow PaxIS to be restored to its full capability.”

And, perhaps, most telling:

“IATA remains committed to providing a competitive option to MIDT data so that the market for such products is not monopolized by GDSs.”

Squabbles between IATA and the GDSs over PaxIS are not exclusive to Europe, with Sabre and IATA locking horns in the courts in recent years and Amadeus appearing before an International Chamber of Commerce tribunal and successfully extracting its own ticketing data from PaxIS.

The European Code of Conduct element to the wider PaxIS story comes as European officials debate whether to overhaul the Code of Conduct in 2012.

The GDSs have so far declined to comment.

NB: Image via Shutterstock.

There has been much conjecture on how it will all play out,  but Sabre now says that American Airlines’ two antitrust lawsuits against Sabre could be resolved before the airline reorganizes and emerges from bankruptcy.

That nugget emerged as Sabre filed a motion in bankruptcy court December 8 to enable it to make counter-claims against American Airlines in federal and state court proceedings in Texas.

If Sabre’s motion is granted — and it says American Airlines is onboard with it — the bankruptcy court in New York would grant Sabre relief from an automatic stay against such legal actions which the airline would normally get because its parent filed for Chapter 11 protection.

Sabre says American Airlines’ state and federal antitrust lawsuits are on a fast-track and could be resolved before the airline reorganizes.

“Granting stay relief benefits American’s creditors because it ensures a timely resolution of the litigation, which will likely occur before American emerges from Chapter 11, or even before creditors vote on a plan of reorganization,” Sabre’s motion said. “Indeed, granting relief permits the parties to expeditiously determine their liabilities and provides certainty to other creditors in the reorganization process.”

In the state court lawsuit in Tarrant County, Texas, pretrial hearings are slated for June 11, 2012, Sabre says.

And, Sabre has a legal army working on the case, noting it “has employed over 100 attorneys in connection with discovery alone” in the state case.

There have been developments in the federal antitrust case in the last few days, as well.

American Airlines on December 5 filed a second amended complaint against Sabre, Travelport and Orbitz in the airline’s federal antitrust case in Fort Worth, Texas.

It’s impossible to tell what new ground American Airlines is trying to cover in its amended antitrust case against its two global distribution partners because the complaint has been sealed by the court.

Last month, the judge in the federal case threw out several claims against Travelport, Sabre and Orbitz in American Airlines’ initial complaint.

It is interesting that Orbitz is included as a defendant in American’s second amended complaint in the federal case because the judge terminated Orbitz as a defendant in the original complaint.

In the federal case, pretrial motions are due by June 15, 2012, Sabre says.

Sabre and American, which saw one of their contracts expire in August, have agreed to a status quo regarding commercial actions against one another until the court cases are resolved.

The hope — among some, at least — is that court verdicts will break the impasses in their negotiations.

Today, airlines distribute and sell their products in two ways: through their websites/call centers (direct channel) or through travel agents and online travel sites (indirect channel).

Of the one billion or so airline tickets sold globally each year, it is estimated that more than 60% are sold through the airline indirect channel.

In the vast majority of the world, Sabre, Amadeus, and Travelport control the distribution of the airline product for the indirect channel.

The GDSs charge the airlines for each ticket sold through their systems, with the average charge being in the $12 per ticket range.

Multiply that $12 by 600,000,000 tickets per year and you get about $7 billion dollars. From these funds, the GDS pay the travel agency or online travel site a financial assistance incentive.

As a general comparison, it costs airlines about $2 to $3 per ticket to sell through their own websites or using new direct connect technology available to them, their travel agency customers and even to the GDS.

This provides an estimated 80% savings over the cost of the indirect channel. If the airline is paying $10 more per ticket to sell through the indirect channel, ultimately it’s the consumer that pays for that higher cost.

To quote leading business analyst Zvi Bar:

“…any resulting changes to the current GDS business model should lower prices to consumers and/or streamline the industry… The long term result should likely be a net positive for consumers.”

Clearly, the GDS companies are critical pieces of the travel supply chain and it is foolish to suggest they go away.

However, it is also fair to advocate for use of lower cost technologies and modernized business models that can lower costs across the board, including for consumers at the proverbial ticket counter.

This infographic simplifies the argument:

NB: This is a guest article by Michael Miller, vice president of strategy for the American Aviation Institute (on behalf of Take Travel Forward).

A result of this is that businesses across the industry, whether they are suppliers, intermediaries or travel technology companies still need to establish the best course of action for their overall strategy.

Here you can learn about the latest social and mobile trends, solutions and opportunities through this exclusive webinar hosted by Tnooz and Sabre.

The panelists for this 60-minute webinar were:

• Will Pinnell, Sabre Holdings director, mobile strategy and traveler solutions
• Sarah Kennedy Ellis, Sabre Travel Network manager for social solutions

• Kevin May, Tnooz editor and moderator

Here is the full video of the webinar:

And the slides:

The decision to file coincides with an announcement of the retirement of chairman and CEO Gerard Arpey. He will be replaced by Thomas Horton.

The airline says it expects to continue normal operations during the Chapter 11 process, a procedure which allows companies to continue while wholesale changes are made to improve the financial footing of a business.

A statement says:

“We took this action in order to achieve a cost and debt structure that is industry competitive and thereby assure our long-term viability and ability to continue delivering a world-class travel experience for customers.”

The Wall Street Journal says the company has around $4.1 billion in “unrestricted cash and short-term investments”, allowing it to pay suppliers and other partners during the Chapter 11 procedure.

The airline filed a third quarter loss in November, blaming fuel expenses which have jumped 40% year-on-year.

Horton has spent 22 years with the airline, most recently as president of both AMR and AA. Today’s move is the first time in its history the airline has had to file for Chapter 11, making it the last of the major so-called legacy carriers in the US to do so.

The move follows last week’s disappointing loss in the US courts as it saw four our of five of its antitrust claims against Orbitz Worldwide and Travelport thrown out.

Horton says:

“American serves 260 airports in more than 50 countries and territories, and we are committed to maintaining a strong presence in worldwide markets.

“I am confident American will emerge even stronger as a global leader known for excellence and innovation, a travel partner customers seek out, and a carrier that serves communities throughout the world.”

So does the Chapter 11 filing mean it’s game over for American Airlines’ direct-connect push and its battles with Sabre and Travelport?

“I would say that remains to be seen, to be determined,” says travel attorney Mark Pestronk.

In other words, with Horton in and Arpey out, a reorganized American Airlines can decide whether it needs to alter its current distribution strategy.

In prior airline bankruptcies, carriers have used Chapter 11 proceedings to reject union contracts and office leases, but they never have tossed out GDS contracts, Pestronk says.

At any rate, American Airlines will have several months to decide about GDS contracts, Pestronk says, adding that the bankuptcy court for the Southern District of New York must decide on contracts before confirming the reorganization plan at the end of the proceedings.

The travel attorney says American Airlines’ antitrust lawsuits against Sabre and Travelport would not necessarily be impacted by the bankruptcy filing because the airline is the plaintiff in the cases.

Of course, American’s financial maneuverings could spur a settlement and new contract agreements with the GDS companies, if that is the approach that Horton wants to take.

Travelport declined to comment on AMR Corp.’s bankruptcy filing, and a Sabre spokeswoman says travel agents will still have access to American Airlines’ content and no near-term changes in the business relationship are expected.

“We are not going to comment on any potential implications of AA’s bankruptcy filing regarding the airline’s litigation against us or our relationship with AA,” says the Sabre spokeswoman, Nancy St. Pierre.

The airline’s debt structure will be part of the reorganization plan and the airline would have more time to pay on a reduced debt load.

In the bankruptcy filing, AMR Corp. says it has $29.5 billion in debts and $24.7 billion in assets.

Travel-related company which are among the 50 largest creditors include Hewlett Packard ($30.8 million), which is building American Airlines’ new reservation system; Boeing ($15.3 million); DFW International Airport ($7.3 million); Sky Chefs ($7 million); BCD Travel ($2.7 million) and Carlson Wagonlit Travel ($2.5 million).

Note: Dennis Schaal contributed to this story.

Most recent updates first…

Tuesday 29 November 2011:

• Amadeus appoints aviation technology executive John Jarrell to head its Airport IT division. Reporting to Amadeus VP of new businesses, Francisco Pérez-Lozao, Jarrell joins from EMS Technologies where he was general manager. He has previously sales director for airport systems at EDS, senior vice president for airport services at SITA for ten years, and also general manager of air traffic systems at Sensis Corporation.
• Travelport loses $19.7 million decision to former distribution partner

Sunday 27 November 2011:

• MassiveGood charity project axed, travel technology worked but brand failed
• TravelTainment in consultation, details still sketchy
• Court: American Airlines antitrust claims against Orbitz dismissed

Monday 21 November 2011:

• Amadeus and Finnair agree deal to use Dynamic Website Manager on the airline’s online platform. The Amadeus-hosted system comprises a booking engine, content editor, media repository, campaign management, portal administration, template engine and full integration of airline business rules.
• Peace in our time: Vayant and Everbread settle long-running dispute
• Airlines to triple ancillary revenue via travel agency involvement

Thursday 17 November 2011:

• Google gears up for international roll-out of Flight Search
• Why air results are as predictable as European finance ministers or marriage vows of Kim Kardashian
• Tnooz-Sabre FREE Webinar: Mobile and social media – sort the facts from the hype
• No change in EasyJet business travel share after four year of GDS use

Monday 14 November 2011:

• Diane Bouzebiba will become managing director for Amadeus in the UK and Ireland from 1 January 2012. She replaces Tim Russell, who stepped down in September this year. With Amadeus for ten years, Bouzebiba was most recently head of the Amadeus Rail business unit, based in Nice.

Sunday 13 November 2011:

• Sabre in dispute with Uruguay national airline Pluna
• Did Orbitz dodge a bullet when Travelport restructured debt?

Friday 11 November 2011:

• Airline trio select Sabre Travel Network for merchandising tools. Alitalia and Finnair will use Sabre’s Electronic Miscellaneous Document (EMD) to give agents the ability the shop, book and send tickets for the ancillary products through the GDS. South African Airways has a similar agreement but will also distribute its own branded fares via the GDS.
• Amadeus keeps migrating airlines, not overly concerned about Google
• Tnooz-Travelport FREE Webinar: The hotel shopping dilemma – consumer, agency and distribution perspectives
• Travelport opens Developer Network scheme
• Amadeus third quarter 2011 results – at-a-glance summary
• Travelport CEO: We have resources and momentum
• Travelport third quarter 2011 results – top-line digest
• How does travel distribution work – the GDS version [VIDEO]

Sunday 6 November 2011:

• Why travel technology feels different in Asia
• Big switch: Vacation rental association and Pegasus come to terms after dispute
• Second credit agency upgrades Travelport, US tester for Universal Desktop unveiled
• Sabre launches global reservation system for video conferencing
• Gilliland: Sabre thinking of IPO — eventually

Wednesday 2 November 2011:

Tuesday 1 November 2011:

• Amadeus signs software platform deal with Cosmos. The UK-based tour operator will receive an integrated technology platform to bring together search and booking for flights, rail and cruise products.
• Sabre renews reservation system software deal with Gulf Air. The multi-year contract is for the SabreSonic Customer Sales and Service line of products and will be installed across the entire Gulf Air network, beginning in Bahrain.
• Qantas ordered to resume flights and resolve dispute, systems already back on track.
• Tnooz-Amadeus Webinar: SLIDES – The impact of the always-connected traveler.
• The big travel technology question: is the industry ready for the IT Spring?

Previous GDS updates:

• GDS news from Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus – October 2011
• GDS news from Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus – September 2011
• GDS news: Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus – August 2011
• GDS news: Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus – July 2011
• Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus briefs – June 2011
• Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus briefs – May 2011
• Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus briefs – April 2011
• Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus briefs – March 2011
• Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus briefs – February 2011
• Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus briefs – January 2011
• Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus briefs – December 2010
• GDS Bitesize – January 2010 to November 2010

MassiveGood raised just $300,000 in under two years, despite a glitzy launch and visibility on a fairly wide array of distribution channels.

The project came together in early-2010 when the Millennium Foundation wanted to plug a campaign into the booking path of travel products to raise awareness and money for projects to fight HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis.

At its launch, MassiveGood was fronted by former-US president Bill Clinton, United Nations’ secretary-general Ban Ki-moon and a string of musicians, actors and other politicians, including then-UK prime minister Gordon Brown.

A Spike Lee-directed video featuring the likes of Hollywood stars Samuel L Jackson and Susan Sarandon was all part of the publicity machine to support the project.

One of the key elements of the campaign was to place a MassiveGood donation tool within the payment process of offline retail travel agencies, via the GDS, as well as on OTAs.

The project had the support of a number of well known travel brands and all three GDSs (both Sabre‘s Sam Gilliland and Travelport CEO at the time, Jeff Clarke, backed it), with Amadeus taking on the lion’s share of the development work.

However, almost immediately after its launch, many in the industry had started to question the level of investment that was supposedly used to get the project off the ground.

A pot of $11 million was talked of as the so-called “seed funding” to create the technology, establish a legal structure for the charity, build the website, etc, although umbrella organisation Millennium Foundation is now disputing the figure.

The worry lines increased further when, six months after its launch, officials admitted the project had only raised $200,000 in donations.

Ten months further on and the Millennium Foundation has now pulled the plug on the scheme.

The GDSs have been asked in the past few weeks to remove the donation functionality integrated in their respective booking tools and publicity materials are being removed from the corporate social responsibility pages of partners.

Millennium Foundation managing director Henk Mulder confirmed this week that the project in its current guise is now at an end, after raising just a further $100,000 during 2011.

Mulder says the technology and integration of the donation tools through the GDSs worked well – unfortunately the project failed due to brand issues experienced from the outset and communication problems when working with offline retail travel agencies.

“It is very disappointing we did not really get MassiveGood off the ground,” Mulder admits, claiming the use of an unknown and new brand, rather than an existing fundraising system, was a hugely prohibitive factor.

The organisation also had difficulties establishing any kind of rapport with offline retail travel agencies, as large companies, consortia, then branch managers and individual travel agents themselves need to be convinced that the customers should be notified of the opportunity to donate.

The project became a loss-leader when it emerged just one in 100 of those customers were donating, giving on average $4 per person.

Mulder says as soon as the branding was altered to include messaging from the International Red Cross, conversion rates increased, but still to only around three in every 100 customers.

Results from online travel agencies, where the donation tool was embedded in the web booking process, were better, Mulder adds.

The Millennium Foundation says the project may continue in some form with individual travel companies, especially in Spain where pick-up was stronger and national airline Iberia was known to have been a keen supporter. A Chinese airline is also interested in working with the project in some way, Mulder says.

“What we have realised is that it takes a lot more money to actually make something like this work,” Mulder says of the investment, adding that despite the good intentions and huge support of the industry, the Millennium Foundation couldn’t continue with MassiveGood with the kind of results it had achieved in the first two years.

An Amadeus official says:

“Amadeus supports numerous CSR projects; we see this as a core part of what we do.

“The technology solution we developed to enable micro-donations from travellers has proved to function well, we will continue to work with existing and new partners to give this technology the best possible use.”

News of the sealed order came from a posting with some of the bare details on Pacer.gov, a governmental website about court proceedings.

All of American Airlines’ claims against Orbitz Worldwide were dismissed; the judge dropped four of the five antitrust claims against Travelport; and Sabre says two of the airline’s “primary claims” against it were dismissed, although an unspecified number of other claims can move forward.

Since the Nov. 21 court order was sealed, figuring out the nuances of the rulings was difficult. However, this clearly was a setback for American Airlines.

The website, part of the governmental Pacer system, indicates that Judge Terry R. Means in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas in Fort Worth granted Orbitz Worldwide’s motion to dismiss on Nov. 21.

Orbitz didn’t provide further details.

In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Travelport states that the federal judge dismissed four of the five claims that American Airlines made against Travelport.

Travelport states the claims dismissed included allegations that:

(1) Travelport monopolizes distribution to travel agencies; (2) Travelport entered into a conspiracy with travel agencies to monopolize distribution; (3) Travelport’s agreements with airlines and travel agencies unlawfully restrain trade; and (4) Travelport’s actions are illegal under Texas state law.

The judge let stand, however, American Airlines’ claim that “Travelport monopolizes access to Travelport’s current travel agency subscriber base,” Travelport says.

American Airlines has until Dec. 5 to further amend its complaint, Travelport states, “but is not allowed to reassert the claims tht Travelport’s agreements with airlines and travel agencies unlawfully retrain trade or that Travelport’s actions violate Texas state law.”

Travelport acknowledges it can’t predict the outcome of the ongoing federal case against it, “but does not believe the outcome of this dispute will have a material adverse effect on its results of operations or liquidity position.”

Meanwhile, Sabre stated that the “court dismissed two of AA’s primary claims, including its claim that Sabre was ‘unreasonably restraining competition.”

Sabre noted that the judge gave American Airlines permission to proceed with “other claims,” but only under the assumption that they are factually true, which Sabre denies.

Sabre states:

As to American’s new claims, the court said only that American may file them with the court.  The ruling specifically stated that ‘the Court is not concluding that these claims are plausible and sufficient to survive.’  The court gave Sabre the opportunity to move to dismiss those claims as well.

We believe that all of American’s remaining claims are baseless and we look forward to proving that in court.  We still prefer to negotiate a new distribution agreement with American Airlines that meets the needs of all constituents, despite AA’s interest to use litigation as a negotiating tool.

American Airlines issued a statement about the judge’s rulings:

American is pleased that the court is allowing American’s principal antitrust claims to proceed and that the court has rejected the defendants’ arguments on key legal issues. Most importantly, the court has held that American can proceed with its claims that Sabre has monopolized the market for provision of airline booking services to travel agents, and separate claims that Sabre and Travelport each has unlawfully monopolized the market for the provision of airline booking services to their respective subscribers.

In addition, the order permits American to raise additional antitrust claims based on newly-discovered evidence, including that Sabre unlawfully organized a group boycott against American, and that Sabre and Travelport illegally conspired with each other to prevent competition from American’s direct connect technology.

At this point, we cannot provide details because the order is filed under seal. However, to be clear, the key monopolization claims that American pled were deemed plausible by the court and remain an important part of the case. We are confident in the merits of our claims and will continue vigorously pursuing this litigation.

In a statement, Orbitz Worldwide notes that the judge “dismissed all existing antitrust claims against Orbitz Worldwide that were brought by American Airlines” and Orbitz “has been terminated as a defendant.”

Orbitz continues:

While the Court’s decision does indicate that American can file a new claim, the Court’s Order notes that the Court has not concluded that the claim is plausible or sufficient to survive a motion to dismiss. With the dismissal of all of American’s existing antitrust claims, we would prefer that our focus is a new agreement with American that reflects the strong relationship we have had for the past ten years as an important marketing and distribution partner.

It is unclear what the impact of the rulings is in American Airlines’ battles with global distribution systems and Orbitz since litigation remains in place in other courts.

American Airlines and Sabre have agreed to stand down in their contract dispute until a state court rules in an antitrust case — not the federal case cited above — perhaps around June 2012.

In its motion to dismiss, Orbitz Worldwide argued, in part:

This motion is made on the grounds that American’s First Amended Complaint fails to state a claim against Orbitz as a matter of law because: (1) the Subscriber Services Agreement, an alleged unlawful exclusive dealing agreement which forms the basis of American’s claims against Orbitz, is not alleged to—and does not—foreclose a “substantial share” of any pleadedmarket, and American’s Sherman Act claims against Orbitz thus fail as a matter of law.

In its claim, filed April 12, American Airlines alleged that Travelport, which controls Orbitz Worldwide, entered into agreements to stymie competition. American Airlines alleged:

As this Complaint describes, Travelport effectively controls the distribution of airline tickets to a large number of business travelers. American also brings suit against defendant Orbitz Worldwide, LLC, which operates an online travel agency and benefits from Travelport’s monopoly. Travelport has engaged in exclusionary conduct, and Travelport and Orbitz have entered into agreements with one another and with others to exclude competition and maintain Travelport’s monopoly power.

It comes to you in the form of a Future Traveler video, with a dash of self-promotion, from Sabre.

It is a world where your every travel whim is at your fingertips via tablet-like mobile devices.

Biometric scans are your gateways to business or adventure travel, the latest flight updates momentarily interrupt your e-reading and video-conferencing technology makes corporate meetings more efficient and brings continents together across a vanishing divide.

Of course, in Sabre’s depiction of an uncomplicated, stress-free and high-tech travel future, you hardly ever even see another traveler in these luxurious, friendly, pristine and worry-free airports of the future.

Jostling for bins to dump your wallets, shoes, belts and laptops in crowded security lanes?

Fuhgettaboutit.

Anyway, here’s Sabre’s Future Traveler:

According to a report, technology called Electronic Miscellaneous Documents is bringing a la carte transactions to the travel agency community via global distribution systems and airline reservation systems.

The IdeaWorks ‘ABCs of EMDs’ report estimates airline ancillary revenue could grow to $100 billion annually through travel agent involvement.

In 2011, ancillary revenue is estimated to be worth $32.5 billion but the report shows this could increase to $100 billion as la carte services such as baggage fees, in-flight entertainment and food and drink are made available for travel agents to book.

The report says that more than 60% of airline bookings worldwide are still carried out by agents on GDS, both online and offline, representing a greater market than that already tapped into.

IdeaWorks goes on to say that ‘best results’ for airlines ancillary revenue equal just under a third of ticket revenue despite predictions from some that earnings from ancillaries could one day make flying free.

IATA has said its 230 member airlines should be EMD ready before the end of 2012 and that the technology should become the only way to settle payments with the travel agency community by the end of 2013.

However, other sources believe airlines will continue to sell ancillaries via a number of different technologies.

Of IATA members, three airlines are already using EMDs while a further 25 have developed the capability.

The report shows that EMDs will play a vital role in making the provision of ancillary services similar to e-ticketing for airlines and travel agency back office systems.

IdeaWorks claims Amadeus has made a la carte services available to agents via its distribution system while Sabre unveiled a global roll out of Air Total Pricing last year making such services available to just under 57,000 GDS subscribers.

According to the report,  Travelport will unveil its offering in 2012.

The deal with Orbitz Worldwide-owned Ebookers will see SilverRail’s Silvercore integrated across 12 country sites in Europe, giving the agency its first foray into rail search and ticketing for multiple train operators on the continent.

Although Ebookers and Orbitz are now on a unified technology platform, Orbitz has not been included in the partnership.

As well as giving users the ability to book rail-only fares, Ebookers will be packaging tickets with hotels also available on the system.

SilverRail is hoping the deal will trigger a wave of interest around online travel agencies to start focusing on rail product, especially in Europe where high-speed train travel is seeing heavy investment by a string of countries including France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK.

The company, which was on the receiving end of a $5 million investment round in April this year, signed another significant deal a few months ago when Sabre picked it to power the rail search and booking provision on the GetThere platform.