Organizations in the Distribution Process - Tourism: Principles, Practices, Philosophies - page 161

Limitations

Despite its great sales volume, the Internet has limitations. It is high tech, but it is not high touch. It
produces an overwhelming amount of information—in many cases, more than the consumer can
digest. It is a challenge to hold the user's attention long enough to deliver your message. A key to Web
success is keeping information current, which is a formidable task. Nothing is worse than seeing
outdated information on the Web. Speed and ease of use still need to be improved. Pop-up ads are
also annoying. Consumers have two major concerns about the Web. One is their right to privacy, and
the other is the security of the site.

The Future

In the ever-changing technological environment, it is essential that all components of the tourism
industry, whether large or small, public or private, have the best intelligence on which to base
decisions. One of the ways to do that is to tap the Internet as an information source. The day has come
when a large segment of the market communicates and transacts business on the Internet as routinely
as talking on the phone.
Speaking of the phone, it is beginning to show great promise to be a powerful force in travel.
Peter Yesawich, CEO of Ypartnership, reports that three out of ten cell phones in the United States
are smart phones with Internet connectivity. Travelers are using them to search for the latest
information on flight schedules and delays, comparison shop airfares and hotel rates, view virtual
visitor guides, and book air travel and lodging. Apple

is iPhone has a travel portal application that is a
travel booking portal for flights, hotels, vehicles, and events. Travelers also use their BlackBerry to
check flights.
Google is poised to be a greater force in travel distribution with its acquisition of the ight
information company ITA Software, the leading provider of flight information from airlines to travel
Web sites. Google will use the acquisition to create an interface to make it easier for people to search
for flights on Google, which already provides a lot of travel information. The acquisition gives Google
the potential to become the predominant online company for travel search. A Google press release
states the acquisition will bene it passengers, airlines, and online travel agencies by making it easier for
users to comparison shop for flights and airfares and by driving more potential customers to airlines

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and online travel agencies Web sites. Google will not be setting airfare prices and has no plans to sell

airline tickets to consumers.
Another way is to think beyond the Internet. How soon will the Internet be old technology? Will
the mobile phone become the dominant Internet platform? How soon will consumers be able to book
travel from all sorts of devices, such as their television set or an appliance we do not know about yet in
a networked home? Voice-recognition systems are improving, and the price of hardware and software
required to support them is declining. How soon will they become a part of the automated system?
The smart agent or digital robot is a computer application that can complete speci c tasks without
human intervention. Will this application become commonplace?

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CONSOLIDATORS

Consolidators are travel agencies that sell airline tickets at sizable discounts. They specialize in this
area and have contracts with one or more airlines to distribute discount tickets. Airlines work with
consolidators to help fill what would otherwise be empty seats.
Some consolidators act strictly as wholesalers, selling their tickets only through other travel
agencies. Others also sell directly to the public, usually at higher-than-wholesale prices. Thus, they
function as both a wholesaler and a retailer.