Connecting to Content
Never has the travel industry been more inter-connected than it is today. No longer do travel companies just rely on selling their own content. The technology is in now in place to allow the industry to widely, electronically distribute products to everyone's commercial benefit.
There are two main types of content to which one can connect, both critical to the success of travel companies.
Availability and Pricing
Firstly, availability and pricing - many tour operators and dynamic packagers are no longer satisfied with just contracting and selling their own limited range of products. They can supplement this by connecting to travel principals such as airlines and hotel chains or to aggregators such as bedbanks who can provide a single feed to multiple principals. Further along the value chain, those same operators and dynamic packagers are feeding their content to aggregators who are providing feeds to agents.
Rich Content
Secondly, rich content - consumers, connected to high-speed broadband, are expecting detailed and comprehensive multi-media content to help them choose the products they wish to book. Video is becoming the norm, mapping is now commonplace, customer reviews are prevalent. Many travel companies simply cannot afford to assemble this rich content and so are looking to specialist providers to supply this.
The opportunities to connect to content are numerous but there are issues to be tackled. Which content is right for your business? How do you cope with duplication from multiple connections? What are the technological implications? What are the commercial implications?
Making the Connection
At this event, these issues and more were tackled head-on.
Speakers
- Brian Young, On Holiday Group
- Humphrey Sheil - Comtec
- Colin McKee, TravelTainment
- Dave Howard, Trailstream
- Idit Gaztl-Berger, Bing Maps
- Jesper With-Fogstrup, GTA by Travelport
- John Wales, Encore Tickets
- John McQuillan, OpenJaw
- Paul Speakman, Travel Counsellors