Retains Strengths of Both Programs to Provide Airlines Lower Distribution
Costs and Travel Agencies Access to Best-Available Fares and More Revenue
Continental, Rosenbluth, Casto Travel and Others to Transition to New Program
PARSIPPANY, N.J., July 16 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Galileo International,
a leading global distribution services (GDS) company and subsidiary of Cendant
Corp. (NYSE: CD), today announced it is combining the strengths of its
Momentum and Preferred Fares programs to launch Preferred Fares Select(SM)
(PFS) in response to the interests and needs of its travel agency and airline
customers. Galileo is in the process of transitioning existing participants
to the new program, including Continental Airlines, Rosenbluth International,
and California-based Casto Travel.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20020515/GALILEOLOGO )
Preferred Fares Select provides participating airlines an opportunity to
lock in and immediately reduce fees on all U.S.-originated bookings provided
that the airline agrees to distribute all publicly available fares through
Galileo for a three-year term. This includes all fares the airline sells
through any other GDS, third-party Web sites and through their own Web site
and reservation offices.
The expanded airline content will be made available to all Galileo U.S.
point-of-sale travel agencies without any "opt-in" elements as was required
under Momentum, which went into effect March 1, 2003. Galileo travel agencies
will retain the option to receive premium-level benefits designed to increase
sales volume and provide additional revenue streams. These benefits were part
of Business Builder Select, which were provided exclusively to
Momentum-participating agencies. Going forward, all U.S. travel agencies will
have the option of subscribing to these benefits for a nominal fee while
participating Momentum travel agencies will be "grand-fathered" and retain
these premium-level options for the duration of their contract.
"At Galileo we pride ourselves on working in partnership with our airline
and agency customers, and we believe Preferred Fares Select delivers the best
of both worlds as it addresses the significant and immediate challenges faced
by our partners, providing airlines with market competitive distribution
savings while delivering our travel agencies access to more robust airline
content with added revenue opportunities," said Ken Esterow, executive vice
president of airline services for Cendant's Travel Distribution Services
Division.
"The GDS-travel agency channel remains the most efficient and Galileo
pledges to continue working with our customers to find additional solutions to
further drive costs out of the travel distribution equation," said Esterow.
"Continental and Galileo came together this Spring under Momentum to
change the industry paradigm and broaden the distribution of Continental fares
at lower costs," said Jim Compton, senior vice president of marketing for
Continental Airlines. "Galileo's flexibility and responsiveness in
introducing Preferred Fares Select shows how committed they are to innovation
and to providing a cost-competitive and comprehensive distribution platform
for Continental over the long-term."
"We were pleased to help Galileo introduce Momentum to the marketplace as
an innovative and cooperative program and plan to work with Galileo to make
Preferred Fares Select a success as it represents another important
opportunity to strengthen our competitive edge in the marketplace," said Alex
Wasilov, president and chief operating officer of Rosenbluth International.
"We remain committed to working with Galileo and all partners to increase the
long-term vitality of the industry and help increase the availability of
content to our customers."
"As a Momentum participant, we applaud Galileo's actions to level the
competitive playing field," said Gus Vallejo, chief operating officer of Casto
Travel, Inc. "We will work closely with Galileo to transition to Preferred
Fares Select, which ensures our agents and customers have access to the most
complete airline content available. We are likewise pleased Galileo is
retaining Business Builders Select because it enhances the services we offer
our customers."
Galileo is currently working with its airline partners and travel
agencies to transition to Preferred Fares Select, which will become the
primary program offered through Galileo. Preferred Fares Select is currently
available to airlines and travel agencies for U.S.-originated bookings,
however Galileo continues to explore delivering the program to other
international regions.
About Galileo International
Galileo International (http://www.galileo.com) is a global technology
leader. Its core business is providing electronic global distribution
services for the travel industry through its computerized reservation systems,
leading-edge products and innovative, Internet-based solutions. Galileo is a
value-added distributor of travel inventory dedicated to supporting its travel
supplier, agency and corporate customers and, through them, expanding traveler
choice. A subsidiary of Cendant Corporation (NYSE: CD) and part of Cendant's
Travel Distribution Services Division, Galileo is headquartered in Parsippany,
NJ, and has offices worldwide.
About Cendant Travel Distribution Services Division
Cendant's Travel Distribution Services Division is one of the world's
largest and most geographically diverse collection of travel distribution
businesses. The division, employing some 5,000 people in more than 110
countries, includes: Galileo, a leading global distribution system (GDS)
serving more than 47,000 travel agencies and over 51,000 hotels; hotel
distribution and services businesses (Trust, THOR, WizCom); leading travel
agencies, including Cheap Tickets and Lodging.com; an airline market
intelligence company; and Highwire, a corporate travel booking company.
SOURCE Galileo International
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Related links:
http://www.galileo.com
Photo Notes:http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20020515/GALILEOLOGO
CONTACT:
Galileo US Inquiries, Dawn Lyon or Jill
Brenner of Cendant Travel Distribution Services, +1-973-496-5870,
TDS.CorpCom@cendant.com
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