THE INTERNET HAS A LOT TO ANSWER FOR IN MAKING LIFE DIFFICULT FOR TODAY'S AIRLINE LEADERS. Information technology has always created headaches for management, but the appearance of the internet added a whole new dimension of transparency – of prices and seat availability. This engaged the consumer more directly and opened up new opportunities for intermediary dealing

These, the so-called online travel agents (OTAs), were not in reality agents paid by the airline. They merely were able to insert themselves in the selling chain because they provided the public with an attractive proposition. And, instead of selling tickets directly, they referred a would-be traveller on – either to the airline directly or to a global distribution system (GDS), which then paid the OTA for the referra

American found this distasteful, firstly because the heavy accent on prices alone led to commoditisation of the airline’s product; and secondly because the GDS – to add insult to injury – was paying the OTA out of the fee the GDS then charged American for the referral. The concentration on pricing, argued American, meant that qualitative and other valuable items were overlooked. If instead the customers had gone to American’s website directly, they would have been able to see the full range of upsell opportunities, therefore preventing American from maximising its ancillary revenues.