A
global
distribution system
(GDS) is a database capable of storing and updating enormous
information on the supply of a wide range of tourism products
worldwide. GDSs enable the travel agents to access, in real-time,
availability, features and prices of flight tickets, hotel rooms,
rental cars, cruises, ferry reservations, trains and other services.
With a Global distribution system integrated to their website, travel
agencies can allow their customers to search and book travel products
and services and issue tickets too.
Global
Distribution System
Travel
agencies are greatly aided by GDS
systems
because they are enabled to offer their customers rates, inventory,
discounts, rooms, and descriptions on a real-time basis. In other
words, global distribution systems are intermediaries between travel
product suppliers –and travel retailers who sell tickets to the
final consumer.
Main
features of GDS:
• Report
availability and prices of travel products
• Reserve
user requests.
• Sale
and ticketing
• Track
sales (extend customer’s stay, change of flights, etc).
• Facilitates
control management for travel agencies).
Evolution
of GDS
The
prototype of GDS in the travel industry can be seen in the 1950s as
the traditional legacy business model which inter-operated between
airline vendors. Computer reservation systems (CRS), at the initial
stage, was used by the airline companies as an automated booking
system, but later, travel agents were given access. Around 1980, CRS
enabled travel agents to connect to various travel providers in a
single system. At this stage, in addition to flights, hotels and car
rentals were included. CRS acquired much strength by late 80s being
so helpful to both suppliers and distributors. In the 90s,
computerized reservation systems of airlines were transformed to
global distribution systems (GDS). So we see that GDS has developed
from airline alliances and ended up becoming independent business
units with product internationalization and introduction of new
products, especially hotel rooms, which is why Amadeus and Galileo
software are used for all the top travel agencies worldwide.
GDS
integration for travel agencies and suppliers of travel products
Travel
agencies must have full access to a global
distribution system GDS.
To get connected to a GDS, travel agencies need a contract. This
will enable the travel agents to provide an astonishing amount of
travel product rates and information to their customers, at the
lowest possible rates. An experienced travel technology company can
integrate any GDS to the computer reservation system or website of a
travel agency.
It’s
critical also for the properties to be on a GDS. Travelers now go to
travel portals to find travel products. So hotels, car rentals, etc,
have to be there to get Internet visibility and, thus, more
reservations. A GDS allows real-time access to inventory system of a
hotel with the current prices, discounts, room types, facilities like
Wi-Fi and different aspects of interest to the potential customer.
Owners
can hire a good travel technology company to get access to the GDS of
their choice. A property can be connected only in one GDS provider.
If the property owner wants to change the provider, he can cancel the
existing provider and activate another with a switch letter.
How
much does it cost?
To
integrate GDS to your system, you’ll have to pay a one-time setup
cost and pay a monthly charge of a minimum amount per reservation.
Major
GDS systems
Amadeus
was started in 1987 by Air France, Iberia, Lufthansa, and SAS in
order to create a European GDS, by fusing their CRSs. In 1989, seven
more airlines joined Amadeus and began to allow travel agents to book
flights through neutral screens. It is now the largest leisure
package distributor in the world. Through Amadeus GDS integration, a
travel agent can offer travel products from 430 airlines in 195
countries, 32 car rental companies in 37,918 locations, 20 cruise
lines and 300,000 hotel properties. More than 100,000 travel agencies
are connected with Amadeus GDS.
Sabre,
a joint venture by American Airlines and IBM, was started in 1960. In
1970, Sabre system began to be installed in travel agencies. Now
55,000 travel agencies use Sabre GDS to book products from 400
airlines, 88,000 hotels, 24 car rental brands, and 13 cruise lines.
Galileo
and Worldspan are the other two major
GDSs.
There are also third party consolidators like Sahara, Infini (Japan),
Axess (Japan), Tapas (Korea), Fantasia (South Pacific), and Abacus
(Asia/Pacific) that cater to particular regions or countries.
The
big consolidators also include such as Expedia, Orbitz (Merchant
program registration needed), Hotels.com, Travelocity, AAA, Hotwire,
Priceline and TravelWeb.
The
future of GDS
As
a tool of of content aggregation, GDS is here to stay and be more
powerful. Novel technological solutions in middleware continue to
appear. Global
distribution systems
have a long way to go.
