Southwest Airlines has partnered with Spotnana for a "deep integration" into its platform, making full content and servicing available via Spotnana, the companies announced.
The companies expect the integration to go live by the end of this month.
The integration connects Spotnana to the Southwest Partner Services API, which provides access to the same content available via Southwest's website and its Swabiz online business travel booking tool, including promotional fares not available through global distribution systems, Spotnana founder and CEO Sarosh Waghmar said. Users also can access Southwest's EarlyBird Check-In via Spotnana as well as self-service capabilities.
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"Southwest is a major U.S. carrier, and lots of business travelers need access to Southwest content," Waghmar said.
In terms of self-service, the integration enables travelers to change their own flight after checking in, delete their boarding pass and exchange to a new flight. Travelers also can cancel flights, receive an unused ticket and redeem it for a new flight within the platform. Spotnana's analytics provide data on bookings, exchanges and cancellations to travel managers, according to Spotnana.
Southwest VP and chief sales officer Dave Harvey said the connection was built in "near record time for one of our API partners," noting that the "timing was right" given Spotnana's growing roster of corporate customers. It's the latest announcement in Southwest's expanding distribution strategy, which turned a critical corner in recent years when Southwest first began providing content and full booking capabilities in global distribution systems.
"We got a great solution for people that want to do business in the GDS, but we're not putting all our eggs in that basket," Harvey said. "We've got folks like Spotnana that are changing the game in a healthy way, and we have a whole roster of direct-connect API partners while we continue to invest in Swabiz."
*This story originally appeared in Business Travel News.