Where does the intermediary’s relationship with the customer end and the airline’s begin and what exactly is a direct booking? When you gather travel distribution execs together, inevitable discussions ensue around collaboration, emerging technologies and the power of Google and other companies including Facebook termed gatekeepers, but, a recent…

This is a roundup for product news and announcements for travel people moves in tourism and hospitality for December 2016. Friday 2 December 2016: Sabre hires ex-Expedia VP Traci Mercer becomes Sabre’s senior vice president hotel, car, cruise and rail, having joined from Hootsuite Media in Canada. She was with…

Ever wondered why airlines are so desperate to work out how to get passengers to buy more stuff? It’s estimated to be a $67.4 billion bounty this year. The latest ancillary revenue report from IdeaWorks and CarTrawler is forecasting an $8 billion increase in airline ancillary revenues from the 2015…

With that simple headline, commerce arrived on one of the world’s most engaging visual platforms. An official blog post marked the announcement from the Instagram team. There would now be ways for businesses to tie purchases to Instagram posts. NB: This is a viewpoint from Robert Dawson, vice president…

This is a roundup for product news and announcements for travel DISTRIBUTION in tourism and hospitality for December 2016. Friday 2 December 2016: Vueling brands with Travelport The IAG-owned carrier will use Travelport’s Rich Content and Branding service, part of its Merchandising Platform. The tool allows the airline to…

The US secretary of commerce has called on China to reconsider its position on the ban on overseas Global Distribution Systems from operating in the country. Penny Pritzker, in what is likely to be one of her last keynote speeches ahead of a new administration taking office in January 2017,…

This is a roundup for product news and announcements for travel systems in tourism and hospitality for December 2016. Thursday 1 December 2016: Sabre upgrades payments into Red Partner service Conferma and Sabre will now allow virtual payments to be made for air tickets through the Sabre Red Workspace. The…

“Test and learn” is the official message behind Booking.com‘s decision to shut down the Villas.com standalone vacation rentals brand this week. The Priceline Group-owned accommodation giant says there is no change in its strategy for alternative accommodation such as homes, apartments and villas, but concedes that data has shown its…

This is a roundup for product news and announcements for travel devices in tourism and hospitality for December 2016. Thursday 1 December 2016: Samsung travels with Lonely Planet Oners of the Samsung Gear G3 smartwatch will have content from the destination guide publisher included as standard on the device….

A big challenge facing the tours and activities sector continues to be the non-standardized nature of guide and tour leader training. When a traveller books a tour or experience, there are few indicators which can reliably determine whether they will have excellent guides. Online review sites and word of…