GDS news from Travelport, Amadeus, Sabre, Abacus - October 2012

Product news, releases, projects and more from the global distribution systems during October 2012 - all here, in one easy read.

More recent updates first:

Tuesday 30 October 2012:

Travelport signs signs agreement with South Africa consortium eTravel. The five-year agreement with the agency group, one of the largest in the region, will see Travelport technology for its back-end tools. eTravel has more than 150 affiliated businesses under its umbrella, with support offices in Johannesburg and Cape Town.
Rate parity in European hotels – October to December 2012
Airlines to net $36 billion in fees and upsells this year worldwide

Monday 29 October 2012:

Travelport taps Sabre for new Asia-Pacific chief. Patrick Andres will join as vice president and regional managing director for the region, having left the role of VP in Asia-Pacific for Sabre Hospitality Solutions after six years. Andres takes over from Simon Nowroz who is moving to a group VP role overseeing business development in Brazil, China, India and Japan. Based in Singapore and reporting to Jason Clarke, group vice president and managing director of global sales, Andres has also worked for IATA, Expedia and software company SAG.
THack @ WIT Singapore – high commended, gamification, creativity and more

Saturday 27 October 2012:

Amadeus dedicates day to employee community service. Staff in North America volunteered time and donated resources to a number of initiatives in five cities in the US and Canada as part of a wider effort in the company's corporate social responsibility programme. Projects included food drives, care packages, landscaping and creating a local mural.
What’s on the travel brain today: Personalization, trust, interoperability, and coopetition
Russian travel distribution shoots Sputnik-like into a new age

Friday 26 October 2012:

Abacus signs agreement with Far Eastern Air Transport. The exclusive partnership with the Taiwan-based carrier gives Abacus-connected agents the ability to access full fares and inventory. Only Abacus agents will be able to book directly with the airline, the GDS claims.
Offline travel agents are bouncing back because web is bewildering [says travel agent group].

Thursday 25 October 2012:

Travelport brings GalileoTerminal mobile system to Asia-Pacific. The web-based system allows travel agents in the region to gain access to both Galileo and Apollo services via a PC, laptop, mobile or tablet devices. The tools gives agents the ability to make bookings, reservations, obtain fare quotes, and re-issue and refund tickets.
Eleven tips when picking the best channel management technology for hotels
European hotel prices – October to December 2012
Investing in hotel technology – guest needs versus franchise demands
Big tech alert: Long tail markets may leapfrog traditional travel retailers

Tuesday 23 October 2012:

Amadeus signs distribution agreement with Jetstar Japan. The partnership sees Amadeus-connected agents given access to the new low cost airline's fares, schedules and inventory. The carrier, part owned by Qantas, Japan Airlines and Mitsubishi, is slated to begin operations in late-2012, serving domestic routes around Japan.
Travelport appoints Damian Hickey as vice president for distribution sales and services in Asia-Pacific. Reporting into Derek Sharp, group vice president and managing director, Hickey will have overall responsibility for partner relationships across airlines and rail companies. Prior to joining Travelport, Hickey was most recently regional vice president for the South Asia and India at SITA. He has also worked previously at Amadeus and Datalex.

Monday 22 October 2012:

Travelport renews National Travel Systems partnership. The agreement sees the Texas-based travel management company (an education, sports, government and missionary specialist) continue its use of Apollo for access to air, hotel, car rental and cruise product. The company will also use the Rapid Reprice automated ticket pricing tool.
Amadeus launches airline Ancillary Services for UK and Ireland agents. The Amadeus AAS tools will give agents in both countries the ability to sell additional products on Air France, KLM, Finnair and AirBerlin such as preferred seats, meals and extra baggage.
Transport and ticketing clear winners as mobile payment methods converge to NFC?
Industry speaks out as IATA lifts lid on open standards distribution plan
Tnooz-Travelport webinar VIDEO: Making open travel tech ecosystems work to your advantage

Wednesday 17 October 2012:

Travelport and Aero Mexico sign global content agreement. The full-content package is multi-year and gives all Travelport GDS-connected agencies access to the carrier's full fares and inventory.
A one-click business trip and friendly reviews via Facebook win THack @ WIT Singapore
Amadeus streamlines corporate booking tool, tests mobile app

Tuesday 16 October 2012:

Abacus and BCD Travel sign technology agreement. The partnership will see BCD in Hong Kong upgrade to the Abacus PowerSuite in the next few months. The new deal is the latest in a 20-year relationship between the pair.
As the Asian tech powerhouse continues to grow, can offline travel agents compete?
Boxever wants to bring genuine Big Data to airlines
Big shuffle at Travelport includes departure of marketing chief
Is miles to cash the future as mobile wallet allows users to spend anywhere?

Friday 12 October 2012:

Air Botswana and Travelport agree full content agreement. The multi-year deal with the national carrier gives Galileo, Worldspan and Apollo-connected agents access to full published fares and inventory. The agreement is an extension of a long-term customer for Travelport in the region.
Amadeus opens orphanage in Haiti. The project was completed in collaboration with the Great Commission Alliance and provides shelter, education and services for up to 100 children between the ages of four and eight. The initiative was launched following the 2010 earthquake and saw Amadeus employees and and customers raise almost $200,000 to fund the creation of the orphanage.
American Airlines moves to reassure agencies as Sabre trial nears
What airline, what device and when – a quick guide to mobile and internet access
Tours and activities: instant web bookings still largely a dream

Thursday 11 October 2012:

Sabre and Aerolineas Argentinas unite for SkyTeam alliance technology push. Sabre will upgrade the South American carrier's entire IT platform including revenue, network and flight planning tools. The latest development follows Sabre and the airline's technology agreement signed in May 2011 for integration of the SabreSonic Customer Sales and Service platform.
Travelport and Statesman Travel Group migrate technology following 2011 Commodore acquisition. The UK-based business travel agency bought the company in October last year and switched GDSs within a six-week window. Commodore will use the SmartPoint system following the migration.
Abacus signs deal with PayPal. The APAC GDS will integrate a PayPal payment option within the existing WebStart and WebConnect systems for travel agents. PayPal customers currently number around 113 million users (including travel brands) in 190 markets around the world.
Tnooz-Amadeus FREE Webinar: How to market and sell unbundled travel

Wednesday 10 October 2012:

Abacus launches AutomationHub system. The tool is designed for making business processes and manual tasks more efficient, targeted specifically for its agent clients. It works by automating time-consuming tasks such as schedule change notifications, waitlist status processing and itinerary delivery to customers.
Greatest areas of stress for business travellers – road warriors despise a poor web connection
Paying with thumb prints and maybe even gestures by 2025 – consumers think it is inevitable
Google Flight Search one year on – no wonder rivals can sleep safely in their beds at night

Tuesday 9 October 2012:

New hires for Travelport in UK and Ireland. Jasmeen Kaur joins from Pegasus Solutions as business development director. She was previously director of revenue generation in Europe. Another ex-Pegasus staffer, Stuart Raymond, becomes hospitality business development manager. Lastly, Chris Burwell who joins as senior account manager from technology provider Multicom.
Privacy protection and data use still big concerns in social seating game [INFOGRAPHIC]
Is THIS how video conferencing will hit business travel? [VIDEO]

Monday 8 October 2012:

Abacus ramps up China division. More moves from Abacus as the China open-GDS initiative kicks in, with Ooi Chee Teong appointed general manager for the country. Ooi oined Abacus ten years ago and has overseen development of business development for airlines, channel management and agency relations in China. He also spent over five years in Beijing and Shanghai as the assistant general manager or the country. He reports directly to recently appointed chairman Jack Zhai.
TnoozLIVE – AUDIO: Economy and consumer trends, how they hit tech, social and mobile
Room Key CEO talks partnerships, numbers and value propositions
Australian distribution strategy could be template for other tourism boards

Thursday 4 October 2012:

Sabre signs distribution deal with Copa Airlines. The Latin America-focused passenger and cargo carrier has extended its existing agreement so all Sabre-connected agents can gain access to full content, including via the GetThere and BizSite platforms. The partnership includes support for Copa's merchandising strategy.
GetThere promotes from within for new MD role in EMEA. The Sabre-operated travel mamagement software business has pushed Guy Snelgar up from his existing position as business development manager. He will oversee sales, service and operations across the EMEA region. Snelgar joined GetThere in 2008 as sales director, having previous experience at British Airways, Holton, Portman Travel and Galileo.
Standby: Time for Asia to lead the global travel technology revolution
Middle East hotel prices – September to November 2012
Pegasus Connect becomes the latest brand evolution at Pegasus

Wednesday 3 October 2012:

Qantas and Sabre sign distribution pact. The long-term, global full content agreement continues an existing patnership between the pair to give Sabre-connected agents to published fares, schedules and inventory rom the carrier. In addition, advance seat selection - one of the airline's ancillary services - will be included in the agreement.
Deutsche Bahn to open-source data activists: Drop dead

Tuesday 2 October 2012:

Amadeus teams up with AirBerlin for ancillary products push. The partnership uses the Amadeus Ancillary Services tool and alllows Amadeus-connected agents in Germany, Austria and Switzerland to sell additional luggage, preferred seats and meals usignthe the EMD process. The system is also being used for other ancillaries for agents in Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Spain and Sweden.
Airlines need to take-off not face lengthy delays with innovation

Monday 1 October 2012: