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The first products distributed by GDS was hotel lodging reservation system, such as different types of rooms, description and price categories with the airline system. GDS has been increased on the travel market, such as number of flights. Travel Agencies (TA) also use GDS to offer complimentary products, such as car rental, hotel and other related forms of accommodation, bus tickets, vacation tickets, yacht rides and even flowers and champagne,That means, GDS has become more important distribution channel for nay product through TA. Also TA had more opportunity of more products their own system and GDS system from increase number of booking volume with lower operating costs. It was the first and major goals of GDS being used in the hospitality industry. Even though hopitality ingustry use GDS system, there are few problems, such as show only simple structure. For example, there are 4 different kinds od room and 3 categories od comfort, it means they have 12 different kinds of combination. Because of the GDS database structure, only there 12 combination could be displayed. It took a while to fit all the multiple types of comport rates, rooms and services in GDS standard database structure. Instead of choosing GDS system, they cans choose other alternative system with develop several computerized system to make a database structure closer to product specification. Nowadays, GDS using all of the hospitality industry from reservation hotel rooms to car rentals and Travel Agencies. Through GDS as globally, people are able to to book different kinds of hotel rooms in different destination all around the world, tours, airline seats, cruises and eeve limousines.

Looking at these numbers it becomes very clear how important GDS are to the hospitality industry, more rooms booked means increased revenues and more jobs for hospitality professionals. I am sure that this technology will evolve and transform so it is important to stay current and understand how to get the most out of it.

What's global distribution system? This question is kind of cliché in our group, but this article gives a very good introduction about GDS and it's quite easy to understand comparing to many other articles introducing GDS. This article tells us: How GDS develops from being used only in airline industry to being generally adopted in hospitality industry; What is the working idea behind the GDS; Four major GDS including Amadeus, Galileo, Sabre and Worldspan; Advantages provided by GDS.

This article sheds light on an under-developed and growing section of the hospitality industry: short-term rentals. Focusing in on an emerging software company, the article reviews the need for pricing and revenue management software not only in hotels but also in short-term rental listings. "Beyond Pricing", an emerging revenue and pricing software, is currently creating tools for this specific market to increase revenue through strategic pricing

Airlines around the world are sadly continuing to battle the ever lasting effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. Currently domestic airfare prices are down 5% since September 2019 and international fares down 8%. These price drops are expected after summer month travel exhaustion, although these prices are at a lower price than 2 years before. The biggest question within the industry right now is whether or not prices will see a steady uptrend in the coming months as we approach the holiday season.

This article discusses what travel agents think about the enhanced ability of both corporate and leisure based travel agencies to sell airline ancillaries because of improved Global Distribution Systems' technologies. Ancillaries are products and services that airlines sell to gain additional revenue on top of your ticket price. Ancillaries have become increasingly popular in the airline industry because of the sky rocketing price of jet fuel. To keep ticket prices down airlines are "unbundling" items from the overall experience. This presents them with an opportunity to turn a profit by charging fees for bags (carry on, checked, additional), on board food and drink, credit card purchases, headphones. It seems like everything you encounter from when you arrive at the airport to when you disembark the plane has a fee. This phenomenon is especially present in Low cost carriers such as Spirit, Air Tran, Jet Blue, etc. However there are consumers who disagree with this additional costs as is apparent in Southwest's continuous marketing campaign. I'm sure everyone has seen the commercials with Southwest representatives 'flagging' down unnecessary fees in order to promote their 'bags fly free' campaign. Anyhow the reason I am explaining ancillary revenue is because travel agents are now starting to sell more ancillary products such as hotel accommodations, travel insurance, rental cars because of GDS technologies. They can track the sale of fees through EMD (Electronic miscellaneous Documents) which is the current industry standard. In the article some agents state that the EMDs are hard to understand and use. I believe until the EMDs become "seamless and easy to use" there will exist some hesitation to sell airline ancillaries. However on the other hand the article states that Travelport is working towards a simple and uniform platform called Travelport Universal API/Desktop. Once this comeplete perhaps more agents will feel comfortable selling ancillaries. This is a goo

I still remember when most airlines used to include breakfast or dinner for their passengers including alcoholic beverages well that doesn't happen any more. I believe when Travelport Universal Desktop becomes available it would become more clear to travel agencies the transaction process and for the consumers what products and services they are ofering.

I too miss the days of free sodas and peanuts. "Sigh-" sometimes its the little things in life that bring the most joy. I agree I think the new Travelport Universal Desktop will be a valuable tool if utilized correctly.

No matter what telecommunications strategy a property takes, one thing is for certain, it needs to be a different one from the past. The early 1980s marked the beginning of an era of profitable hotel telephone departments. The advent of call accounting systems (thanks to deregulation) enabled hoteliers to easily mark up calls to a profitable (some say too profitable) level.

In modern society hotel need more attrahent thing increase revenue. The traditional way may lose competitiveness, like telephone services. Because almost everybody using personal cell phone and more and more people prefer to use internet to communicate such as email and skype. In my opinion if hotel build some telecommunications use internet such as physical skype phone and provide cheap service that may be attract more people to use that.

With the emergence of "self-contained guest," hotel telecommunications departments must change its offerings because old strategies no longer apply. A self-contained guest is one that does not need the traditional amenities hotels would offer for telecommunications, such as fax machines and printers. Guests now look for a fast, free internet connection as an amenity. Some may not even need wifi, because they have a faster mobile service that they use. Even hotel telephones, guests no longer want to use the land line and pay hotel fees to make a call. Cell phones have eliminated that need (even for international calls). So hotels must not stay the same, and must change their strategies for producing revenue from their telecommunications department.

The article talks about one of the most popular provider of pricing and revenue management for hospitality industry, which announced today a new pricing system -IDea. It offers effective and affordable pricing to any hotel. System is well-known by simplified and intuitive approach and requires minimum training and interaction to learn and operate the system.

this article summarizing the importance of the revenue management. it explains that to maximize the revenue, hotel have to see the rooms at the "right price to the right people at the right time". it also explains the difference in price based on the seasons, or business cycle. it encourages managers to recognize when the demand will go up and adjust the price accordingly. 

Yield management is a process by selling limited quantity of goods to create maximum profits. Successful yield management requires a manager to sell, such as hotel room, at the right time, right price, to right customer. To achieve this goal, manager should understand what the purpose of hotel, what the category of hotel, and why customer choose their hotel rather than others. And also should know the market principal about price fluctuate during off season and busy season. So it is necessary to know well about yield management in order to survive in the fierce competitive environment.

This article brings us into a deep insight of whether pricing technology offered by OTA is reliable or not. Firstly, two views should be considered before answering this question: one, there is a conflict of interest between an OTA and a hotel property; two, what data goes into their formulas, where it comes from and is it sufficient to make reasonable pricing recommendations. The author provided deep analyses for these two main point and came to the conclusion that: being sure that you know the game rules before utilizing those free pricing intelligent tools.

The equipment we use in technology such as out computer is not a determent of what prices we pay. Orbitz is showing mac users higher prices on hotels simply because they use a mac instead of a PC. The CEO states thats not a fact but facts prove that mac users are 40 % most likely to book a 4 or 5 star hotel. The engineers from Orbitz are experimenting with predicting what the consumer will search for and not giving mac users a higher price on hotel nights. Technology has now become a sterotype is how consumers are feeling by the futy posted in twitter. At the end of the day the consumer can search for different hotels prices and rooms no matter if a mac or pc user.

This article is about the current rise in the use of the GDS system again. This rise has been seen primarily with corporate travelers, but has also been used by the leisure traveler. While GDS usage percents dropped from 98% in 1999 to 79% in 2009, it has slightly started to increase again. Sabre one of the larger GDS companies has seen a 7% increase in use of the system in 2012. Hotels have tried to give companies better rates to their consumers, for example as more corporate travelers are extending their stays from a business trip and then turning it into a leisure trip for a few more days. This gives the traveler a lower rate a night at the hotel, as they are staying for more nights. Overall, while there was a decline in the use of GDS because of the OTA, there is now a slight increase, bringing life back to the GDS system.

This article gives an in depth explanation of the importance of GDS's in the hotel industry and the increased usage of the GDS due to the rising travel demand. The American Society of Travel Agents conducted a study in 2009 and found the percentage of member travel agencies that used the GDS declined from 98% in 1999 to 79% in 2009. A significant portion of the decrease was due to the economic downturn, but regardless hoteliers and travels still found value is the GDS channel. According to Sabre Travel Network, there was an increase of more than 7% in GDS bookings during the first quarter of 2012 over the same period last year. The demand for corporate travel is the main reason for the increase. Many people that are traveling for business want to extend their trips for leisure. This allows hotels the opportunity to adjust their pricing strategies by putting travel promotions for leisure for the business travels as well. Many people utilize the GDS to find the most affordable prices, but it is also beneficial to hoteliers as well. Elaine Kennedy, one of the two interviewed in the article, stated the pricing model provides corporations with a lower rate when demand decreases but also gives hoteliers the opportunity to achieve higher rates when demand increases, which ultimately is a win-win for both sides. The GDS also provides many opportunities for hotels to cut costs. Robert Cole, the other person interviewed in this article, stated "The GDS also provides enhanced marketing support….immediately when you use the GDS to put your product, your service, your room, your rate, you're getting it in front of an audience without using your own marketing budget." According to Robert Cole, the GDS is not going away any time soon because of the unique solutions it provides for hotels and travelers alike. I believe this article was very informative on how the GDS is currently being utilized and where it is going in the future. It basically helped answer question 3

The article "The Software Algorithm That Turns Hotel 'Lookers' Into 'Bookers'" poses questions about the pricing algorithms in the airline and hotel industry. It then introduces and explains the software developed by Bruno Perez and Jean Francois Mourier called REVPAR GURU. In essence, the software is a revenue management system that analyzes data points online and internal factors within the company to provide suggested price-points to maximize profit. I believe that this software simplifies the job of the revenue manager because with the software they no longer have to agonize over data about reaching capacity at the highest room rate, they now focus on the data given by the software and its suggested prices. The idea for the software stemmed from the fact that we are going through a shift from offline to online in our society and more and more people are now doing their bookings online. I believe that this software has the right idea and is available at the right time during the shift to online. As more and more companies adapt, adjust, and use the online world, this program will continue to succeed. 

This article focuses on new hotel apps, focusing on Recharge, that let you rent upscale hotel rooms by the minute/hour. As the article states, this is not a new concept and has been offered in the pass usually at motels. This app looks to change the demographic of those looking to rent hotels for a small amount of time. The app is already active in popular cities around the world, they aim to only work with 3-5 star hotels. I downloaded the app and thought the pricing was a little concerning, but it goes back to the demographic the app is targeting. Recharge aims to appeal to travelers with long layovers, business people looking for a quiet spot in between meeting, sight seers that may need a nap, and even mothers looking for a safe place t publicly breastfeed. Their pricing is right in line with their target demographic as the cheapest price is usually around $30 per hour, and there is always a service fee; the author of the article talks about staying in a hotel for 15 minutes and paying $65 dollars. Personally the pricing is a huge setback, but business wise it makes sense. You are covering the cost of housekeeping having to go in and reset the room, and front desk reprogramming the keys/ handling check in and check out. While I think the system could create a bit of a challenge for hotels in terms of making if something is ready and clean or not, it is another opportunity to increase revenues. This app especially during the slow season for hotels, could help them fill their less desired rooms, if only for an hour. It is similar to a restaurant way of thinking "How many times can we flip this table (room) in peak hours". I may not use the app, but if I was traveling with friends and splitting the cost, I would definitely take the opportunity to pay a few bucks to nap in a 5 star resort.

This article speaks on how GDS are doing in the age of 2020. Not only does it talk about how its doing over all but it also goes over how they remain successful with the new times. Keeping up with changing demands and trends.

This article talks about how GDS system usage has been and continues to increase over the years. While many owners prefer direct bookings on their site. GDS has been increasing at a faster rate than other channels which are used by travel agents. Hotels need to e using the GDS platforms in 2020 and beyond to maximise the benefits that it brings.

Scott Falconer's article, "Is 2020 the year of the GDS," entails discussion of the survey results of the DGS site as the most sued and rapidly growing site for booking by travel agents. Falconer also advises hotels and other travel agents to optimize the use of the GDS site to increase bookings and therefore profitability. In discussing the survey results, Falconers also suggests the GDS increase its potential by maintaining parity, observing prices, and promotions are critical in its continued growth. Falconer's finding first indicates that GDS usage has significantly grown in the past ten years. The author notes that by 2019, the number of travel agents using the site of GDS to make bookings had increased from 42 million to 79 million between 2009 and 2019 (Falconer). In the recent past, Falconer argues that the ratings and growth in usage of the site provide hotels with opportunities to grow revenue as the site makes 22 times more bookings than consumers. Through surveying with 900 travel agents, Falconer concluded that GDS is a prime channel for bookings because of its recent fast growth compared to other alternative booking sites. Secondly, Falconer notes that there is a need to stabilize the parity rates for the GDS channel to succeed. Based on the survey, most travel agents indicated that parity rates are influential to the decision to book a facility using the GDs site or others. Therefore, Falconer advises the GDS management to ensure the consistency of the price that properties offer to clients on other channels. The services listed in the sites are available as indicated at the property. In this case, the GDS can improve booking experience by clearly stating commissions, discounts, or cancellation policies at the site to increase the availability of information to the clients regarding the nature of commitment and expected services as the promised value. Falconer also highlights the importance of adver

This article was able to summarize all the different event registration softwares that are available currently and their pros and cons. It gives you a good idea on what software you would prefer for your company depending on what they have to offer.

As technology continues to advance, companies are looking into what works well for what kinda consumer. RateTiger is targeting corporate consumers, who want to be in control of room rates and have the ability to negotiate better deal based on services provided. RTC uses RPS, rate parameter shopping that searches thru hundreds of travel sites, hotel brand sites and GDS offeres corporate buyers, OTA's and travel companies the opportunities to build a rate around the best room rate for the perks and services, in comparison to what the public pays.

Excellent Article!...While corporate travelers are noticing fluctuations in "Best Available Rates (BAR)" I can only imagine that hotel owners and stakeholders are seeing a decrease of revenue caused by the ADR (Average Daily Rate). During the recession hotels had to re-shape their thinking and lower Corporate Room Rates to stay afloat; these changes caused the ADR to be lower than usual. As the economy improved, it has been harder for companies to re-negotiate corporate rates in an attempt to increase the ADR and profits for owners/stakeholders. http://www.bcdtravel.com/global/show_document.asp?id=aaaaaaaaaadsveg

This technology will provide business travelers the ability to compare hotel prices based on the type of rooms. This will help the customer in customizing their own needs during travel, while being price savvy. The traveler also has the ability to have default settings that will meet their own room specifications.

This interview talks to Gareth Gaston, senior VP of Global E-comerse in the Wyndham Hotel Group, about recent trends in E-comerse.He believes that E-comerse should be apart of every department in the hotel, Front Office, Sales, Marketing, and the departments should help the Online Travel Agencies to draw more guest. Mr. Gaston believes that hotels need to start to create a partnership with online travel agencys(OTA) and begin to create a better system for price consolidations online rather than fight them at every turn for overbooking or under-pricing.

Highlight: IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group) is inviting preferred business accounts across Asia Pacific to move to a dynamic pricing model, guaranteeing corporate travellers to always pay less than best unrestricted rates at its InterContinental® Hotels & Resorts, Hotel Indigo®, Crowne Plaza® Hotels & Resorts, Holiday Inn® Hotels and Resorts, Holiday Inn Express in the region. My Description: InterContinental Hotels Group is making efforts to turn its original accounting and pricing system into a more dynamic and flexible one, which can make more market-sensitive hotel rates according to the demand situation. Currently , IHG is trying to increase the scale of market-sensitive rates to the traditional contract rates. Therefore Corporate travel managers should feel confident they have access to the best possible rates in hotels of IHG. This model guarantees they will pay less than any other unrestricted rates. One advantage of this market-sensitive accounting and pricing system to annualized rates is to respond to unexpected market condition. This dynamic pricing system will not only help corporate managers to reduce related costs but also bring more convenience to corporate travelers as the increase of booking channels. The application of IHG's dynamic pricing system bring many positive feedbacks, especially as these corporate customers usually end up paying less than their RFP-contracted counterparts

This article describes the potential in the airline industry for practicing revenue optimization based on the data they collect from their customers and using it to tailor their prices. The argument is that these companies already have much of the data stored they just are not currently using it to its full potential in this digital age. The benchmark the author uses is Amazon. This is part 1 of a 2 part series. 

Marketing and E-business for tourism industry A good marketing plan is important to the success of businesses. There are several guidelines and ways to use electronic medium to stay competitive. A business has to always take care of the existing customers and their needs without forgetting to attract new customers. Tourists are using internet to shop for new destinations so an online presence is very important for consumers so they will be able to find out information about the business. There are several guidelines to consider: * Promptness people expect to get a response within a reasonable time. * Quality means that your website should be able to compete with other websites on the internet and this means that it should have good quality photographs and professional tone to the websites. * Consistency means a good consumer service and a professional image. There are many ways to promote services online: email newsletters and promotion, building traffic by working with other websites, offer deals, get involved in discussion sites about the industry you are in. During an off season bookings, simplicity of booking should be a priority. Tourism operators should join travel and tourism "mall" to offer their products and host their site and use these low cost services. Companies can also promote their products online by offering auction style sales that helps consumers have some kind of control over the prices of the different services in tourism. One of the perks of online shopping for travel services is the price transparency and the fact that costumers have choices of different prices in front of them. Company should Increase a web marketing pull by offering different services and also advertising with other companies. Promote and minimize the costs of the services by adding "do-it-yourself" features. A list such as: A FAQ, maps of location of other area attractions and local guides for rental outlets. To improve the way you market your products and

This is an interesting article about Google, who is quickly becoming a big name player in just about every business segment out there. The article addresses Googles new search tool called Hotel Finder, which is still in testing phases. This tool is designed to make it easier for users to find, compare, and book hotels, by drawing on a map around an area they want to stay in a certain location or city and it lists the hotels in the search area, with prices, availability, star rating's and reviews. In addition it lets you filter the results by price, price compared to usual, Hotel class, and user reviews, and allows the user to book directly through the hotel or through an intermediary site with a click of a button. This article also talks about a possible downside to Googles new service in the online travel agency segment. The article explains how some are concerned, because Google is placing comparison ads in premium space on top of the Google search results for hotels, which when clicked by a user takes the them to the full Google site and pushes OTA sites like Expedia, Hotels.com, and Orbitz and hotel websites farther down the search results list, which is making them pay more for premium Comparison Ads. Also the OTA's are concerned about how the Price Per Click may go up, making the OTA's pay more to Google. I went on and played around with Hotel Finder, and I have to say it is very easy to use, and allows you to really customize your experience and pick exactly where you want to stay. http://www.google.com/hotelfinder/#search;l=miami+florida;d=2012-01-22;n=1;v=l;r=0;s=m;fv=

I love the part of the Google Hotel Finder about the comparison ads that help me know how much I would pay if I book the same hotel from other websites by only visiting one Google Hotel Finder website. I hate to search the same hotel on different websites to choose the best price. It costs me much time to make a plan of travel. The page of Hotel Finder is clear and easy to understand how to use it. All results of hotels would be sorted by price and I could get best price fast. Yesterday was my first time to use Hotel Finder and I used it just like I already knew how to use. I don't need to spend much time to study the search website and the page has several recommended words to help me get what I want.