Sabre tool ‘to aid airlines switch to e-ticketing’
Technology designed to help airlines switch to e-ticketing in areas not covered by IATA’s Billing and Settlement Plan (BSP) financial billing system has been developed by Sabre.
Sabre Airline Systems’ ‘Agency Activity’ system claims to enable carriers to move closer to the target of 100 percent e-ticketing in all countries, rather than being forced to operate a dual electronic/paper ticket regime.
The web-based system is designed to track e-tickets issued by non-BSP agencies, automate the sales reporting and settlement processes, and allow airlines to manage the credit they extend to individual agencies.
Non-IATA agencies can get the credit for their sales and distribution activity, Sabre said.
“In the past these agencies tended to have no direct relationship with airlines. Now, sales revenue generated by specific agencies or agency groups is easily visible for airline sales teams.”
Travel agencies have round-the-clock, real-time, online access to their current invoices and available credit levels, Sabre claimed
IATA has set a deadline of May 2008 for the elimination of paper tickets issued under BSPs, and most airlines have switched, or are switching, to e-ticketing in BSP markets.
But until now airlines have had to maintain paper ticketing in nearly 40 arreas that do not have a BSP, according to Sabre.
A full transfer to e-ticketing will help airlines collectively save at least $3 billion annually, based on a per-ticket cost of $1 for an e-ticket and $10 for a paper one, IATA calculates.
Sabre Airline Solutions EMEA vice president Murray Smyth claimed: “By automating sales reporting, online invoicing and credit control in this way, we have given airlines a powerful tool to improve productivity, reduce financial risk and assist in reducing the payment collection cycle.
“This is on top of being able to phase out paper ticketing completely – not just in markets that have BSPs.”
by Phil Davies
Phil Davies
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