Amadeus signs deal with Indian

Global travel technology major Amadeus signed a special agreement recently with the national carrier Indian wherein the airline's domestic flights will be booked on Amadeus in India. This unique facility will allow travel agents and bookers on the Amadeus system in India to directly book all Indian domestic flights including pure domestic bookings. Furthermore, all bookings and transactions will be in real time on the highest level of access, enabling bookers to give seamless and efficient service to their clients. The decision by Indian to select Amadeus India is a strategic step as it provides them with a wider distribution network and enables the airline to be more competitive in terms of expanding customer reach and enhancing sales efficiencies and services. Elaborating on its agreement with Indian, Ankur Bhatia, managing director, Amadeus Indian subcontinent, said, "As travel technology experts, India is a significant market for Amadeus, given the tremendous potential and dynamic growth of its travel sector."

Dr Vishwapati Trivedi, CMD, Indian, said, "Delivering first-rate customer experience right from the travel planning phase till one makes it to the desired destination, without compromising on quality has been the mantra for Indian. It is a known fact that Amadeus India is the largest, and the leading GDS in the Indian subcontinent and our tie-up with them in the region is another step towards this commitment. With Amadeus, our reach will further extend to the vast network of travel agencies across the globe and will enable us to provide our end customers a good, consistent product." Amadeus India claimed that it does over 50 per cent of the travel agency business of Indian which by far is the largest compared to any other GDS. Amadeus will now provide Indian with the E-ticketing Server (ETS).

Amadeus ETS helped the carrier to increase operational efficiency and aid travel agents by reducing the workload associated with traditional tickets. Since 2004, over 300,000 E-tickets have been issued using Amadeus technology. In March 2004 Amadeus partnered with 12 major international airlines by offering e-ticketing solutions. As of date, around 45 carriers offer E-ticketing. In 2005, 14.30 million tickets were issued (paper and e tickets) on legacy carriers alone. E-tickets issued in 2005 were 500,000, which is a mere 3.4 per cent of total tickets. However, industry growth of 25 per cent (year on year) clearly spells a huge potential for the E-ticketing segment. Today, almost 1,000 travel agents in India have the capability to issue E-tickets. India was the fastest growing market in 2006 for E-tickets in Asia Pacific, with over 200 per cent growth in the usage of E-tickets.

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