TTI Forum 1306 - The Travel Technology Initiative

Summer Forum 2013 Tuesday 11 June 09:30 to 13:00
Take Flight!
The Forum
There is a revolution taking place in access to flight inventory.
In 2010, Google sent shockwaves through the travel industry by
acquiring flight distribution technology specialist, ITA Software. The
company’s technology powers Google Flight Search which, as with
all Google features, is astonishingly simple and fast to use. At the
moment, Google Flight Search passes the traveller to the airline or a
travel agency site to make the booking.
More recently, the International Air Transport Association has
launched its New Distribution Capability (NDC). The airline-led
organisation describes NDC as “a collaborative industry initiative to
define a messaging standard that will enable retailing opportunities
through the indirect (GDS/travel agent) channel.” However, as such
a standard would allow travel agents and airlines to message
directly with each other, is NDC set to challenge the flight distribution
dominance of the global distribution systems?
The GDSs have not been sitting back idly. For example, Travelport
has launched its Travelport Merchandising Platform which it has
described as ‘a significant change in the distribution landscape.’
Clearly, there is turmoil surrounding the whole issue of access to
flight inventory. In response to this, TTI has assembled an
authoritative group of speakers who will give their expert views on
what is needed by airlines & travel management companies and
who might be the winners and the losers as the latest technological
developments take hold. Attend this forum and find out for yourself
whether or not you should Take Flight!
Venue:
Strand Palace Hotel, 372 Strand, London, WC2R 0JJ
nearest undergrounds: Charing Cross & Covent Garden
The Speakers
Massimo Morin
Head of Technical Sales, EMEA & APAC Travel
Google
Rob Wortham
Joint CEO
RWA Ltd
Jerry Foran
Head of Product Delivery, Revenue Management
British Airways
Simon Ferguson
Managing Director - UK and Ireland
Travelport
Katherine Cook
Director & General Manager UK
Egencia
TTI wishes to extend its warm thanks to the following organisations for sponsoring this event:
TTI shareholders:

Take Flight!
The Forum
09:30 Registration and Coffee
10:00 Welcome & TTI Update, Peter Dennis, Chairman, TTI
10:15 Keynote: Take Flight or Take Fright?
Rob Wortham, Joint CEO, RWA Ltd
Accessing flight inventory has become a complex topic. Never before
have so many players been introducing alternative solutions - from
the global distribution systems to the internet-only airlines - from flight
content aggregators to IATA’s New Distribution Capability. In this
overview you will hear about the concerns and issues facing the
travel industry.
Rob is Founder and Joint CEO of RWA Ltd. In this role, he is
responsible for managing all development activities, technical presales,
financial management and jointly the overall management of
RWA. The company is a leading global travel technology provider. Its
Sell-It Suite product range is a "browser-to-balance sheet” integrated
reservation and booking management system for tour operators,
wholesalers and airlines.
10:35 What TMCs Want!
Katherine Cook, Director & General Manager UK, Egencia
TMCs need access to flight inventory that is fast, provides the widest
possible choice of flights and the best prices. In this presentation you
will hear from one of the largest TMCs about the issues and concerns
it faces and its desires for the future of flight distribution.
Katherine has an innate understanding of flight distribution. Prior to
joining Egencia, she spent seven years at British Airways in various
roles including Market Planning Manager and Global Distribution
Partnerships Executive. She joined Egencia in 2007 responsible for
European Supplier Relations and was appointed Director & General
Manager UK in February this year.
10:55 Flight Distribution Technology & the Travel Industry
Massimo Morin,
Head of Technical Sales, EMEA & APAC, Travel, Google
As flight distribution technology has advanced it has introduced new
opportunities for access to flight inventory. ITA Software was at the
forefront of this revolution and, as a result, was acquired by Google in
2010. Hear from one of the leading experts on the changing
dynamics of flight distribution and its associated technology.
Massimo has 19 years of experience in the airline industry as
developer, analyst, product designer and, now Head of Technical
Sales covering pricing, airline distribution, revenue management and
e-commerce. He is responsible for all technical engagements in
EMEA & APAC for Google. He acquired a Masters Degree in Science
of Transportation / Airline Business and Management from MIT.
11:15 Coffee
11:45 IATA’s New Distribution Capability
Jerry Foran, Head of Product Delivery, Revenue Management,
British Airways
NDC is an IATA-led collaborative industry initiative. The organisation
has seen that there is a gap between direct (airline websites) and
indirect (GDS/travel agent) channels due to the fact that airlines use
two different messaging formats for these channels. NDC aims to
close this gap. Hear more about the project and its implications from
an expert who is closely involved.
Jerry has worked for BA for more than 35 years and runs BA’s
Product Delivery unit which is responsible for the distribution of BA’s
Prices, Schedule and Availability, managing 100+ interline
agreements and the support and development of BA’s Revenue
Management systems. He also owns the relationship between the
Operation and Commercial in the event of disruption. He is a
Director on the Board of the Airline Tariff Publishing Company
(ATPCo) and is Chairman of the IATA Passenger Tariff Conferences
Steering Group.
12:05 GDSs at the Forefront of Flight Distribution
Simon Ferguson, Managing Director - UK and Ireland, Travelport
The travel industry’s global distribution systems have remained at the
forefront of flight distribution for many decades. They continue to
evolve and develop their technology to meet the needs of the
industry. Hear from one of the country’s leading experts on how they
will continue to help the industry meet the challenges of remaining
relevant and delivering added value to travellers across the world.
Simon was appointed as Travelport’s Managing Director for UK and
Ireland in September 2011. In this role he is responsible for all the
GDS’s activities in the region. Prior to Travelport, Simon was
General Manager of Travelzoo, responsible for its Destinations and
Affiliate Network business. Before this, he was Chief Executive of
TWgroup, leading a management buyout of the Travel group from
Reed Business information.
12:25 Speaker Panel Session
This will be your opportunity to hear the speakers debate the subject
of access to flight inventory and for you to ask questions and join in
the discussion.
12:55 Chairman’s Summary, Peter Dennis, Chairman, TTI
13:00 Close
Moderator: Paul Richer,
Genesys - The Travel Technology Consultancy
Registration
TTI members - 2 free delegates (Additional TTI member delegates and Unicorn licence holders £15 + VAT)
AAC / ABTA / ABTOF / AITO / BETA / ETOA / GTMC / IFITT / OpenTravel / Revenue Management Society / members £35 + VAT
Others £75 + VAT
Register online at www.tti.org/forum To contact TTI, email admin@tti.org or call 0871 244 0747