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Luzi Matzig in TravelAsia
TravelAsia, July 19, 1996
The role of the CRS is coming under question with
the advancements of new technology. What happens to the CRS if
systems such as the Ken-Air Global Travel Network, which rides
the Internet, become a reality? That was the debate at the recent
PATA Asia Business Forum in Hong Kong. Yeoh Siew Hoon reports.
The debate on CRSs (Computer Reservations Systems)
has already started in the US - with some airlines offering inducements
to agents not to book via the CRS.
Reno Air, for example, is offering an additional
two per cent commission to any agency who would call a toll-free
number to make the reservation. They were being offered a two
per cent bonus for not using their CRS. (TravelAsia, June 28-July
4).
Questions such as what future role will CRS systems
play, will new technology bypass them to some extent and will
they become obsolete, have been raised - questions which also
popped up at the PATA forum. The debate started when Kenny Goh,
managing director of Ken-Air Leisure Group Singapore, showed off
a "live" demonstration of the much-talked-about Global
Travel Network (GTN).
GTN's objective is to become a one-stop shop, with
interfaces to airlines' GDSs, to enable agents to book travel,
using the Internet. It allows agents to book travel, get instant
confirmation and print vouchers, among other features.
With an S$8 million investment, GTN uses Java programming
and smart graphics to guide users into the system. The "live"
demonstration showed its user-friendliness. However it is hard
to say how long it would take in real life, given congestion on
the Internet, to use the system. GTN is due for launch January
1997 with Ken-Air talking to strategic partners in Europe and
Australia, as well as in Asia.
Ken-Air is touting GTN as a total TRS (Travel Reservations
System).GTN's competitive edge is its ability to offer travel
agents the facility to book and package multi-segment holidays
and trips on the Internet. Features such as last-minute availability
as well as a search engine for lowest fares are included.
With airlines trying to cut down on distribution
costs which make up 22 per cent of overheads, and more trying
to use the Internet for reservations, this is an attractive proposition.
The question thus arises, will Internet bookings replace CRS bookings
long term? This question was asked at a breakout session on "Shaping
the role of the travel agent".
Luzi Matzig, general manager of Diethelm Travel Thailand,
forsees a day when this will happen. "We now have an Internet
department of three people just handling e-mail reservations and
enquiries. This will grow to 10 staff by next year and 20 the
year after.
"These direct reservations are good because
we don't have to pay commissions or a booking fee."Danai
Wansom, vice president-sales and marketing of Century International
Hotels, observes, "At the end of the day, we have to pay
more if reservations come through a third party like the CRS.
It costs us an extra HK$30 per booking. We are happy with anything
that gives more net income to the hotel."Ken-Air's Goh says,
"All hotels and airlines have their own web sites but they
need an integrated search engine which can bring the products
together.
"A human or a computer? Who can do the better
job? I think it's impossible for the human because he is not dynamically
linked to other databases.
"CRSs use SITA lines which are expensive, they
are big capital investments. The reason they are in business today
is because they are the only one that can provide the integration
between hotels and airlines.
"If there comes an alternative system which
rides on the Net and provides the service, things will change.
All the CRSs are looking at GTN nervously," says Goh.
However John Moffly, regional manager-sales and marketing
of Galileo International, who chaired the breakout session, was
unperturbed. "GTN has taken what other companies have done
and put the information in a simple, agency environment.
"Galileo is a major supplier of travel information
to longhaul wholesalers in Europe and the US; GTN is pushing the
window closer to the consumer. But no system is that easy to use
for the consumer at the moment."
Richard Kunz, vice president, product marketing and
business development of Abacus, was also not convinced the emergence
of systems such as GTN would spell the demise of CRSs. "Look
at Easi-Sabre and Travelocity, they have been dismal failures.
On-line services are not easy to use. It is easy if you want to
book from point A to B and you have a preferred seat and a preferred
airline but if you go beyond that ...
"It will be a long time before the computer
can replace the human logic of travel selection on behalf of a
consumer."
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