This is a roundup of product news and announcements for travel DISTRIBUTION in tourism and hospitality for December 2014.
Monday 29 December 2014:
Ryanair launches US site
- Budget carrier Ryanair has unleashed a version of its website for the US. The www.ryanair.com/us service enables users to search and book by price, route and dates via 'Fare Finder' while a 'Share the Fare' feature enables them to share prices with friends and family on social media.
Hotelzon expands into Ireland
- Travelport-owned Hotelzon is establishing operation in Ireland after the recent extension of the hotel distribution player into Denmark, France and Poland. The Ireland base will be managed by local sales manager Adrian Fitzgerald. Travelport acquired Hotelzon about six months ago as part of its focus on the hotel and corporate travel segments. Hotelzon is also looking to recruit sales teams in Germany, Portugal, Belgium and Norway.
Friday 19 December 2014:BusBud gets Greyhound expansion
- The bus booking service has partnered with the coach operator to give users access to all its routes across North America. Some 3,800 routes are available via Greyhound, bringing the total number on Busbud to 170,000 worldwide.
Thursday 18 December 2014:Nor1 partners with Accor
- Accor is to use Nor1's eStandby upselling system across its upscale and luxury properties following a partnership between the companies. The technology enables hotels to create ancillary revenue by offering guests relevant offers. Deployment of eStandby follows a pilot across Accor properties in North America, Europe and Asia.
EgyptAir plans transformation via
Sabre- Sabre is to help EgyptAir and Express increase revenues, drive efficiency and find new revenue streams. The transformation plan will take place over the next 18 months.
Travelport invests in Turkey
- Distribution giant Travelport has established a new operator office in Turkey, for Galileo and Worldspan products, taking over from Turkish Airlines, the current distributor. Travelport has been present in Turkey for 20 years and the investment in customer service and infrastructure supports the growth in the destination's travel sector.
Friday 12 December 2014:Expedia and Best Western agree new distribution deal
- The new partnership will see all 4,000 Best Western properties from 100 countries included on Expedia and its sister sites (Hotels.com et al).Part of the agreement will see the chain participate in Expedia's Traveler Preference programme, giving guests the option to pay for their hotel either at the time of booking or during their stay.
Travelport signs up
Azerbaijan Airlines- The new agreement gives Travelport-connected agencies around the world with access to the carrier's fares and inventory. Local agencies will also for the first time be able to book tickets and access content with the airline.
Wednesday 10 December 2014:CarTrawler and Abacus strike car distribution deal
- Due for release in the first quarter of 2015, CarTrawler's portfolio of ground transportation and chauffeur-driven cars will be made available to all Abacus-connected agencies. The addition of CarTrawler content will bolster the existing the 1,300 car rental suppliers on the Abacus platform.
Hotelzon expands into Denmark
- The Travelport-owned hotel distribution system will have a base in the Danish capital of Copenhagen, headed by sales manager Bo Johansen. The expansion into Denmark follows similar launches in France and Poland.
Monday 8 December 2014:Blacklane integrates with Qunar
- The China-focused travel search engine will users to search for Blacklane drivers of private cars, vans and other vehicles, with a display of flat rates for transfers between airports and other destinations in Chinese Yuan. The integration will initially feature 30 cities in Asia-Pacific, Europe and North America. All 150 cities will be completed in due course.
WAYN and
Viator unite for destination tours and activities
- The partnership will see TripAdvisor-owned Viator integrate its product and services into the WAYN travel social network on a dedicated channel. The addition of search and booking of tours and activities follows a similar deal with Booking.com for accommodation and the launch of a social recommendation engine to collect reviews from WAYN's 23 million registered users.
Tuesday 2 December 2014:Travelport appoints new chief information officer
- Matt Minetola will have responsibility for leading the company's technology services, having joined from HP Financial Services where he held a similar position. He has also worked for Compaq, First USA/Bank One and Wingspanbank.
Wizz Air gets car rental opportunity
- Priceline Group-owned RentalCars will provide the airline with search and booking facilities on its main website as part of the deal. Customers will be able to add car hire to their existing flight reservation as a single payment.
Abacus appoints GM for China
- Peter Li joins the APAC-focused GDS from TripAdvisor where he was oversaw business development in China. He has also held positions at TravelClick, Travelzoo and Accor. Li will report directly to Brett Henry, Abacus's vice president for commercial operations.
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