Saturday, October 30, 2004
Leighton steps down at Lastminute: BBC NEWS | Business | Leighton steps down at Lastminute
BBC NEWS | Business | Leighton steps down at Lastminute: "Online travel company Lastminute has said chairman Allan Leighton is to step down in January next year. "
Friday, October 29, 2004
'Over 40% of travel website visits come via search engines� - 29-Oct-04.
'Over 40% of travel website visits come via search engines� - 29-Oct-04.: "More than 40% of visits to travel industry websites come via search engines and directories, according to latest data...
Hitwise UK general manager Simon Chamberlain said: “Travel companies are amongst the heaviest and most sophisticated users of search marketing. In that environment it is no coincidence that customers using search engines to find travel websites are exhibiting signs of maturity in their search behaviour.
“With more than 40% of visitors to travel sites coming directly from search engines, new Hitwise data has shown that 50% of people use more than three words in their search query, compared with a mere 20% using simple one-word searches such as ‘flights’ and ‘hotels’.”"
Hitwise UK general manager Simon Chamberlain said: “Travel companies are amongst the heaviest and most sophisticated users of search marketing. In that environment it is no coincidence that customers using search engines to find travel websites are exhibiting signs of maturity in their search behaviour.
“With more than 40% of visitors to travel sites coming directly from search engines, new Hitwise data has shown that 50% of people use more than three words in their search query, compared with a mere 20% using simple one-word searches such as ‘flights’ and ‘hotels’.”"
All Change for LAs & tourism Destination Management Partnerships - the saviour of domestic tourism marketing? - 28-Oct-04.
Destination Management Partnerships - the saviour of domestic tourism marketing? - 28-Oct-04.: "Regional Tourist Boards are encouraging local authorities to work with their neighbours to jointly promote destinations and form Destination Management Partnerships (DMPs). There are some obvious advantages, but also some potential problems."
Cut staff costs, bulk savings, hire specialists...
The local authority with full responsibility for the tourism activity will transfer its financial contribution to the DMPs. May lead to budget cuts for LA..
major cost of LA tourism activity is running Tourist Information Centres (TICs)... dramatic savings are required. Some authorities currently spend in excess of 90% of their entire tourism budget running their TICs..
..finally, as the RDAs take on a more strategic role for tourism the RTBs will become increasingly marketing focussed. They will be competing with the new DMPs for the private sector support in funding for campaigns...
Cut staff costs, bulk savings, hire specialists...
The local authority with full responsibility for the tourism activity will transfer its financial contribution to the DMPs. May lead to budget cuts for LA..
major cost of LA tourism activity is running Tourist Information Centres (TICs)... dramatic savings are required. Some authorities currently spend in excess of 90% of their entire tourism budget running their TICs..
..finally, as the RDAs take on a more strategic role for tourism the RTBs will become increasingly marketing focussed. They will be competing with the new DMPs for the private sector support in funding for campaigns...
TravelSupermarket - adds car hire comparison search...
TravelSupermarket - Cheap flights, car hire and hotels travelsupermarket.com do the leg work for you. We'll trawl the web to find the cheapest car hire price, whether you want a sporty convertible or a people carrier. With just one search we'll look at over 30 car hire companies all in one go to save you time and money! These include:
Hertz
Holiday Autos
Auto-Europe
Avis
Easycar
ebookers
British Airways
Alamo
Skycars
Expedia
Easy Autos
Record Rent a Car
Cheap-Car-Rental
Autorent
Airline-Network
quick but annoying pop ups
Hertz
Holiday Autos
Auto-Europe
Avis
Easycar
ebookers
British Airways
Alamo
Skycars
Expedia
Easy Autos
Record Rent a Car
Cheap-Car-Rental
Autorent
Airline-Network
quick but annoying pop ups
Travelsupermarket - Find the cheapest car hire
Travelsupermarket - Find the cheapest car hire: "Please complete all the following questions to enable us to trawl the web and find the most competitive car hire for you."
Newsletter announcment states: "travelsupermarket.com do the leg work for you. We'll trawl the web to find the cheapest car hire price, whether you want a sporty convertible or a people carrier. With just one search we'll look at over 30 car hire companies all in one go to save you time and money! These include:
Hertz
Holiday Autos
Auto-Europe
Avis
Easycar
ebookers
British Airways
Alamo
Skycars
Expedia
Easy Autos
Record Rent a Car
Cheap-Car-Rental
Autorent
Airline-Network "
Newsletter announcment states: "travelsupermarket.com do the leg work for you. We'll trawl the web to find the cheapest car hire price, whether you want a sporty convertible or a people carrier. With just one search we'll look at over 30 car hire companies all in one go to save you time and money! These include:
Hertz
Holiday Autos
Auto-Europe
Avis
Easycar
ebookers
British Airways
Alamo
Skycars
Expedia
Easy Autos
Record Rent a Car
Cheap-Car-Rental
Autorent
Airline-Network "
Thursday, October 28, 2004
Rumours abound regarding Donnelly/Harvey deal eyefortravel.com - Travel Distribution News, Events and Analysis
eyefortravel.com - Travel Distribution News, Events and Analysis: "Travel Weekly has hinted that travel industry entrepreneur, John Donnelly, may well be due to sign a joint venture deal with massive, Australian travel giant, Harvey World Travel "
Sabre updates :: Travel Weekly - The National Newspaper of the Travel Industry ::
:: Travel Weekly - The National Newspaper of the Travel Industry ::: "Sabre puts hotel amenities on primary search screen"
travmedia.com
travmedia.com: "
VisitBritain, the authority for tourism in Britain, today announces a six-month trial distribution partnership with Wanadoo, a leading UK Broadband provider and portal, which will showcase the wealth of English holiday experiences on www.wanadoo.co.uk."
Wanadoo.co.uk has over 4 million unique users in the UK
Content & holiday deals are provided by VisitBritain’s partners - Waterscape.com, which promotes days out and holidays on Britain’s rivers, lakes and canals...
Tom Wright, VisitBritain chief executive, said:"20 million people worldwide use VisitBritain’s websites" (no period given...)
England : Welcome to Wanadoo destination site
VisitBritain, the authority for tourism in Britain, today announces a six-month trial distribution partnership with Wanadoo, a leading UK Broadband provider and portal, which will showcase the wealth of English holiday experiences on www.wanadoo.co.uk."
Wanadoo.co.uk has over 4 million unique users in the UK
Content & holiday deals are provided by VisitBritain’s partners - Waterscape.com, which promotes days out and holidays on Britain’s rivers, lakes and canals...
Tom Wright, VisitBritain chief executive, said:"20 million people worldwide use VisitBritain’s websites" (no period given...)
England : Welcome to Wanadoo destination site
Wednesday, October 27, 2004
Travelodge Opens First Low-Cost Hotel At Leeds Bradford travmedia.com
travmedia.com Rooms from just £25
Free shuttle bus service from hotel to airport.
Travelodge is the UK’s fastest growing low-cost hotel brand,
Free shuttle bus service from hotel to airport.
Travelodge is the UK’s fastest growing low-cost hotel brand,
MediaDailyNews 10-27-04
MediaDailyNews 10-27-04: "Only one-quarter of active search marketers can be classified as sophisticated, according to JupiterResearch's second semiannual search engine marketing survey.."
Key Findings
Nate Elliott, author of the report... said, that approximately 150,000 of the 200,000 marketers utilizing paid search are not bidding, tracking, measuring, or expanding their keyword lists effectively, if at all.
50,000 "sophisticates" are more likely to be large marketers...
33 percent of sophisticates have total marketing budgets that exceed $1 million
Sophisticates ... buy more keywords and advertise on more search engines
39% sophisticates buy 1,000 or more keywords per month, compared to 14% of unsophisticates
sophisticates use an average of 3.8 search engines for search engine marketing campaigns, compared to 2.7 for unsophisticates
sophisticates are more likely to hire search engine marketing firms than unsophisticates due to the manpower and resources required to maintain large, expanding search engine marketing campaigns.
For unsophisticates, Elliott concludes "the most basic and most important thing" for them to do is to track and measure their search engine marketing campaigns.
Key Findings
Nate Elliott, author of the report... said, that approximately 150,000 of the 200,000 marketers utilizing paid search are not bidding, tracking, measuring, or expanding their keyword lists effectively, if at all.
For unsophisticates, Elliott concludes "the most basic and most important thing" for them to do is to track and measure their search engine marketing campaigns.
Tuesday, October 26, 2004
P: Ryanair refutes claim that it is considering buying easyJet. Eyefortravel
eyefortravel.com - Travel Distribution News, Events and Analysis: "Ryanair rebuts easyJet takeover claim"
Comp: Bluetooth & Mobile Advertising - http://www.theage.com.au/technology/
Bluetooth bites Sydney shoppers - Next - http://www.theage.com.au/technology/: "Sydney's Broadway Shopping Centre is beaming advertising directly to shoppers as they pass by stores after deploying the largest public Bluetooth wireless network in the southern hemisphere"...
"Bluepulse is like having a search engine in your pocket that is constantly searching for information about your surroundings and presenting the information on the mobile screen..."
"Bluepulse is like having a search engine in your pocket that is constantly searching for information about your surroundings and presenting the information on the mobile screen..."
Partners: Visitbritain promote style or fashion vacations: travmedia.com
travmedia.com: "Planning a style or fashion vacation in England, Scotland and Wales"... "The British American Business Council, VisitBritain and its partners, have brought together a snapshot of leading British Designers and high street retailers. When combined with afternoon tea, the fusion of a traditional British pastime with contemporary style provides a compelling reason to visit Britain."
Partners: "'Vital Importance' Of The World Tourism Forum For Peace And Sustainable Development: travmedia.com
travmedia.com: "'Vital Importance' Of The World Tourism Forum For Peace And Sustainable Development, Says WTO"
WTO Secretary-General Francesco Frangialli underlined that "the Forum aims to promote creation of millions of new jobs and income-generating activities, particularly in the developing world. The goal is to contribute significantly towards social integration and the reduction of poverty". The Forum´s objectives will be accomplished through concrete initiatives, or "illustrative projects", in which the knowledge and solutions developed through meetings and discussion are put to into practice.
For further information contact:
Rok Klancnik,
WTO Press and Communications Department
comm@world-tourism.org,
Tel. (+34) 91-567-8191
www.world-tourism.org
WTO Secretary-General Francesco Frangialli underlined that "the Forum aims to promote creation of millions of new jobs and income-generating activities, particularly in the developing world. The goal is to contribute significantly towards social integration and the reduction of poverty". The Forum´s objectives will be accomplished through concrete initiatives, or "illustrative projects", in which the knowledge and solutions developed through meetings and discussion are put to into practice.
For further information contact:
Rok Klancnik,
WTO Press and Communications Department
comm@world-tourism.org,
Tel. (+34) 91-567-8191
www.world-tourism.org
Users: Virgin Atlantic Starts To Fit Upper Class Suite Onto Gatwick Fleet : travmedia.com
Users: Virgin Atlantic Starts To Fit Upper Class Suite Onto Gatwick Fleet : travmedia.com "The product, Virgins new Upper Class Suite, consists of a reclining leather seat for take off, a place to sit and eat a proper meal opposite your partner, the longest fully flat bed in the world with a proper mattress for sleeping on, a private onboard bar to drink at with your friends and four limousines per return trip all at a price thousands of pounds less than BAs First Class...Since being launched in November 2003, the Upper Class Suite has won six of the industry�s most prestigious design awards...
travmedia.com: Virgin Atlantic is also "introducing brand new amenity kits for its Upper Class passengers, specially designed by bespoke couturier and Savile Row tailor Ozwald Boateng. The new kits, which will be onboard from October 28, will be a designer wash-bag containing essentials for travel including Ozwald Boating socks and toothbrush and a gift specially designed by Ozwald"
travmedia.com: Virgin Atlantic is also "introducing brand new amenity kits for its Upper Class passengers, specially designed by bespoke couturier and Savile Row tailor Ozwald Boateng. The new kits, which will be onboard from October 28, will be a designer wash-bag containing essentials for travel including Ozwald Boating socks and toothbrush and a gift specially designed by Ozwald"
Hertz initiative lets drivers reserve specific make, model :: Travel Weekly - The National Newspaper of the Travel Industry ::
:: Travel Weekly - The National Newspaper of the Travel Industry :::By Jorge Sidron
"In a first for the car rental industry, Hertz said it will allow customers to reserve a specific brand or model of car or SUV at 23 major airports in the U.S. starting next year...will allow #1 Club members to pick and choose among specific brands and models instead of the traditional practice of choosing a car class and having any car within that class assigned to you."
"In a first for the car rental industry, Hertz said it will allow customers to reserve a specific brand or model of car or SUV at 23 major airports in the U.S. starting next year...will allow #1 Club members to pick and choose among specific brands and models instead of the traditional practice of choosing a car class and having any car within that class assigned to you."
Monday, October 25, 2004
Jurys Inn makes Heathrow debut - 25-Oct-04.
Jurys Inn makes Heathrow debut - 25-Oct-04.: "Jurys Doyle Hotels opens its first airport budget hotel at Heathrow next month."
Over half UK short break travellers fail to take out insurance
Post Office travel services survey More than half of UK travellers taking a short break overseas this school half-term will fail to take out insurance... also found that more than three quarters don’t think insurance is necessary for a few days way...This compares with less than a quarter who fail to take out cover when taking a two-week summer holiday.
Cendant’s online travel businesses on the ascendant :: Travel Weekly ::
:: Travel Weekly - The National Newspaper of the Travel Industry ::Cendant’s online travel businesses, pumped up by recent acquisitions and increased bookings at Cheap Tickets, grew faster than the traditional agency channel in the third quarter. However, Cendant’s online channel represents only about 10% of the company’s agency business.
Saturday, October 23, 2004
This Travel Search Site Could Go Far: Mobissimo
This Travel Search Site Could Go Far: "Mobissimo takes a visitor's query and scours about 80 other travel sites and search engines, typically returning a wider array of prices, airlines, and options. The fledgling company already handles about 500,000 travel searches a month -- a blip compared to online travel bigwigs, but solid for a newly hatched search site...
Mobissimo is different, they say, because it scours more purveyors of airline tickets and, soon, lodging, to help assure customers they're seeing the best possible deals. In addition, Mobissimo has no interest in handling customer service or the transaction, which has helped convince many travel sites to let Mobissimo search their sites...
Mobissimo currently takes a small percentage of each travel purchase it facilitates. It's also building an advertising business, in which it sells ads around its search results..."
Mobissimo founder Nestorov says ""There are so many distribution channels. And the information is so dynamic," he says. "It presents a difficult technology problem to solve."
"According to Forrester Research, travel is the largest sales category in online commerce, accounting for $52 billion of the $145 billion in U.S. online sales this year, with the total expected to hit $119 billion by 2010... According to researcher Hitwise, Mobissimo is the 707th-most trafficked travel site on the Web, out of the 3,400 sites it monitors for this category. While a giant like Expedia.com snares about 8% of all travel-related Internet traffic in the U.S., Mobissimo now notches about 0.01%."
Mobissimo is different, they say, because it scours more purveyors of airline tickets and, soon, lodging, to help assure customers they're seeing the best possible deals. In addition, Mobissimo has no interest in handling customer service or the transaction, which has helped convince many travel sites to let Mobissimo search their sites...
Mobissimo currently takes a small percentage of each travel purchase it facilitates. It's also building an advertising business, in which it sells ads around its search results..."
Mobissimo founder Nestorov says ""There are so many distribution channels. And the information is so dynamic," he says. "It presents a difficult technology problem to solve."
"According to Forrester Research, travel is the largest sales category in online commerce, accounting for $52 billion of the $145 billion in U.S. online sales this year, with the total expected to hit $119 billion by 2010... According to researcher Hitwise, Mobissimo is the 707th-most trafficked travel site on the Web, out of the 3,400 sites it monitors for this category. While a giant like Expedia.com snares about 8% of all travel-related Internet traffic in the U.S., Mobissimo now notches about 0.01%."
Thursday, October 21, 2004
About Us >> Hotfoot Holidays
Interesting site although not a direct competitor as such...About Us >> Hotfoot Holidays
Wednesday, October 20, 2004
Online Travel Revenues To Skyrocket Room for Branding.. MediaDailyNews 10-20-04
MediaDailyNews 10-20-04Report: Online Travel Revenues To Skyrocket
by Wendy Davis
The rapidly consolidating online travel industry will double its revenues in the next three years, from $38 billion last year to more than $80 billion in 2007, according to a report released Tuesday by New York research firm eMarketer. This growth potential, combined with the "ongoing realignment," could lead to a new push to "establish market share in online travel," said eMarketer senior analyst Noah Elkin."
The article later states "Despite the companies' attempts to establish brand identities, customers seem to view them. "Site loyalty is still pretty limited," said Elkin, adding that consumers site-hop when making travel plans."
by Wendy Davis
The rapidly consolidating online travel industry will double its revenues in the next three years, from $38 billion last year to more than $80 billion in 2007, according to a report released Tuesday by New York research firm eMarketer. This growth potential, combined with the "ongoing realignment," could lead to a new push to "establish market share in online travel," said eMarketer senior analyst Noah Elkin."
The article later states "Despite the companies' attempts to establish brand identities, customers seem to view them. "Site loyalty is still pretty limited," said Elkin, adding that consumers site-hop when making travel plans."
T Cook gives more focus to high street - 20-Oct-04.
TC gives more focus to high street - 20-Oct-04.: "Thomas Cook says it is bucking the industry trend by investing in the high street."
AskMeNow� mobile question/answer solution USA only
AskMeNow�: "AskMeNow� answers any question you have. Use your cell phone or BlackBerry� handheld to ask a question, and the answer is sent back to your handheld device via text message or e-mail. "
Opticians web system : ic Birmingham - Andy's vision brings in �100,000 funding
Could this be useful to travellers? For replacment specs and other supplies?ic Birmingham - Andy's vision brings in �100,000 funding: "A Midland businessman is set to launch a software system which he claims will revolutionise how opticians manage their practices and communicate with their customers."
Awards: Winners of First Rate Travel Services Visit London Awards announced: travmedia.com
travmedia.com: "annual First Rate Travel Services Visit London Awards"
The General public vote for the three People’s Choice Awards categories, Restaurant, Retailer and Kids Love London.
Restaurant of the Year: Gordon Ramsay at Claridge’s. The public voted via toptable.co.uk web site
Retailer of the Year: Selfridges & Co. The public voted, through WHERE London magazine
Kids Love London Award. The Museum of Childhood. Pupils who are part of the Kids Love London project went on air to champion attractions as twinned with their school, then the BBC London 94.9FM radio audience voted...
Other categories include: Bed and Breakfast, Small Visitor Attraction, Tourist Information Centre, Tourism Website, Outstanding Customer Service, Business Tourism, Local Tourism Initiative and Nightlife...
Tourism Website – Web Diversity: Won by The London Pass
The General public vote for the three People’s Choice Awards categories, Restaurant, Retailer and Kids Love London.
Restaurant of the Year: Gordon Ramsay at Claridge’s. The public voted via toptable.co.uk web site
Retailer of the Year: Selfridges & Co. The public voted, through WHERE London magazine
Kids Love London Award. The Museum of Childhood. Pupils who are part of the Kids Love London project went on air to champion attractions as twinned with their school, then the BBC London 94.9FM radio audience voted...
Other categories include: Bed and Breakfast, Small Visitor Attraction, Tourist Information Centre, Tourism Website, Outstanding Customer Service, Business Tourism, Local Tourism Initiative and Nightlife...
Tourism Website – Web Diversity: Won by The London Pass
Eurotunnel Q3 op. revs fall due to fewer cars, coaches : NewsFinder
NewsFinder: "Total operating revenue fell 4 percent to 140.1 million pounds as fewer cars and trucks passed through the tunnel. Coach traffic fell 13 percent and car traffic fell 5 percent." attribute the fall to "over-capacity and "intense" price competition."
AOL Kayak in talks:: Travel Weekly - The National Newspaper of the Travel Industry ::
:: Travel Weekly - The National Newspaper of the Travel Industry ::: "AOL is said to be in serious talks with travel-search-engine startup Kayak Software about a partnership or acquisition"
Comp: Travelocity and AARP more details :: Travel Weekly -
:: Travel Weekly - The National Newspaper of the Travel Industry ::: "one online competitor of Travelocity...thinks the economic terms that Travelocity negotiated and accepted arent particularly favorable...And, with consumers cross-shopping multiple travel sites for the best deals, this critic wonders whether AARP discounts on a co-branded Travelocity/AARP Web site will provide enough glue to make Travelocity.com more sticky to visitors."
Tuesday, October 19, 2004
Prep Your Web Presence for Mobile Browsers: MediaPost Advertising & Media Directory
MediaPost Advertising & Media Directory: "Prep Your Web Presence for Mobile Browsers" scenario..
new website www.tourismcapetown.co.za eyefortravel.com
eyefortravel.com - Travel Distribution News, Events and Analysis: "The Western Cape, one of the biggest tourist destinations in Africa, including Cape Town and the Garden Route, has launched its new website, powered by Tiscover, a leading global destination systems provider."
Western Cape - The official Cape Town and Western Cape tourism, events and business website - the gateway to Africa
Features:
up-to-date information on:
accommodation
tours
attractions
restaurants
weather
events
maps
region's 75 local tourism offices
7,500 member businesses
regional and town portals
supported by dedicated back-office solutions for Western Cape's regions - City of Cape Town, Winelands and Garden Route
Tiscover is also launching its newly branded destination portal, Tiscover.co.za
Other Tiscover-powered destinations include Austria (www.austria.info), Bavaria in Germany (www.bayern.by), Bournemouth (www.bournemouth.co.uk), the Isles of Scilly (www.simplyscilly.co.uk)
Western Cape - The official Cape Town and Western Cape tourism, events and business website - the gateway to Africa
Features:
up-to-date information on:
accommodation
tours
attractions
restaurants
weather
events
maps
region's 75 local tourism offices
7,500 member businesses
regional and town portals
supported by dedicated back-office solutions for Western Cape's regions - City of Cape Town, Winelands and Garden Route
Tiscover is also launching its newly branded destination portal, Tiscover.co.za
Other Tiscover-powered destinations include Austria (www.austria.info), Bavaria in Germany (www.bayern.by), Bournemouth (www.bournemouth.co.uk), the Isles of Scilly (www.simplyscilly.co.uk)
GDSs and Viewdata revolution discussed at TTI’s recent Autumn 2004 conference
Top 10 Global 'Travel - Transport' sites - eyefortravel.com
eyefortravel.com - Travel Distribution News, Events and Analysis: "Top 10 Global 'Travel - Transport' sites for the week ending 16 October, 2004 based on VISITS"
Multicom’s FindandBook’ Leisure activites GDS for agents travmedia.com
travmedia.com: "
The system returns live inventory during searches, which is bookable in real time and delivered through XML technology"
About Multicom by Travmedia
Multicom is a leading provider of pioneering online booking engines for agents, operators and web brands, and is playing a key role in powering the leisure travel industry's internet marketplace.
Multicom's systems enable its customers to sell product from low-cost carriers, scheduled and charter airlines, and hotels, together with millions of package holidays from tour operators.
See the latest news at: www.rooster.co.uk/news
Search, subscribe by news category, download photos and more.
For further information please contact:
Daniel Johnson
Rooster
tel: +44 (0) 20 7691 3939
fax: +44 (0) 20 7691 3929
email: firstname.surname@rooster.co.uk
web: www.rooster.co.uk
The system returns live inventory during searches, which is bookable in real time and delivered through XML technology"
About Multicom by Travmedia
Multicom is a leading provider of pioneering online booking engines for agents, operators and web brands, and is playing a key role in powering the leisure travel industry's internet marketplace.
Multicom's systems enable its customers to sell product from low-cost carriers, scheduled and charter airlines, and hotels, together with millions of package holidays from tour operators.
See the latest news at: www.rooster.co.uk/news
Search, subscribe by news category, download photos and more.
For further information please contact:
Daniel Johnson
Rooster
tel: +44 (0) 20 7691 3939
fax: +44 (0) 20 7691 3929
email: firstname.surname@rooster.co.uk
web: www.rooster.co.uk
Wotif.com announce new interactive maps in latest newsletter
The Sebel Resort Noosa - Wotif.com Can select show/hide map
Travel: Business travel will get pricier next year: Report - Travel - Personal Finance
Travel: Business travel will get pricier next year: Report - Travel - Personal Finance: By Andrea Coombes, CBS.MarketWatch.com "
Business-travel prices to rise American Express sees slight hike in airfares, hotel rates"
Business-travel prices to rise American Express sees slight hike in airfares, hotel rates"
Saturday, October 16, 2004
Tips on getting listed in Yahoo (and the other big indexes)
Tips on getting listed in Yahoo (and the other big indexes): "You can also ask for reconsideration by mail or phone. I have had reports that, as a last resort, after all else fails, calling and leaving a message on their phone can sometimes generate a quick response. But this should only be something you do after all else fails, and you should mention the steps you've taken in the phone message.
Yahoo! Corporation
701 First Avenue
Sunnyvale, CA J94089-0703
Telephone: +1 408 349 3300 -- 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM PST
Fax: +1 408 349 3301 "
Yahoo! Corporation
701 First Avenue
Sunnyvale, CA J94089-0703
Telephone: +1 408 349 3300 -- 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM PST
Fax: +1 408 349 3301 "
Microsoft and Travel meta search - one to watch...
Microsoft and Travel meta search: "Microsoft And Travel Meta-search"...
"Swapnil Shrivastav, co-founder of SeekNet Technologies, "With SmartRover, consumers can find airfares that best meet their travel needs. This means that fare-sensitive travelers can, with one click, find the best fare between two cities during a range of travel days and nearby airports. They can also search every few hours until a perfect fare is found."
"Swapnil Shrivastav, co-founder of SeekNet Technologies, "With SmartRover, consumers can find airfares that best meet their travel needs. This means that fare-sensitive travelers can, with one click, find the best fare between two cities during a range of travel days and nearby airports. They can also search every few hours until a perfect fare is found."
Friday, October 15, 2004
Active Hotels Takes The Hassle Out Of Booking For Disabled Guests - 28-Sep-04.
Active Hotels Takes The Hassle Out Of Booking For Disabled Guests - 28-Sep-04.: "Active Hotels, is making significant changes to its website in order to display full accessibility information on each of its UK hotels. "
Cendant records soaring web sales - 13-Oct-04.
Cendant records soaring web sales - 13-Oct-04.: "Cendant Corporation Hotel Group had a record-breaking summer generating more than three million room-nights through its hotel brand websites.
The brand web sales represented a 53% increase in revenue over the same period last year"
The brand web sales represented a 53% increase in revenue over the same period last year"
Turn your brochure into a website - 13-Oct-04.
Turn your brochure into a website - 13-Oct-04.: "A technology company says it will create and manage websites for agents and operators off the back of the company�s brochure....The service, provided by Travel UCD, is called "Hassle free websites" and offers agents and operators a fully transactional website created from their brochure."
Travel UCD - consultants in travel and hospitality website design
Travel UCD - consultants in travel and hospitality website design
Travelocity brings net room rates to Europe :: Travel Weekly
:: Travel Weekly - The National Newspaper of the Travel Industry ::: "Travelocity sends net hotel rates to Europe"
UK to be first
Has details of number of hotels etc
UK to be first
Has details of number of hotels etc
Cendant restructuresto focus on travel & real estate :: Travel Weekly
:: Travel Weekly - The National Newspaper of the Travel Industry ::: "Cendant simplifies operations to focus on travel, real estate biz "
Cendant subsidiary RCI rebranding timeshare....travmedia.com
travmedia.com: "Sarah Long @ RCI Europe on 020 8762 6582
RCI is a global provider of leisure travel services to businesses and consumers, and the worldwide leader in holiday property exchange. As a growth partner to its business clients, RCI leverages core competencies in branding, networking and partnering to unlock the value of leisure assets in holiday ownership, hospitality, real estate, travel & tourism, and with affinities. RCI has 3,700 resorts worldwide and on an annual basis arranges two million exchanges for its 3 million members globally. It is a subsidiary of Cendant Corporation (NYSE: CD), a provider of travel and real estate services which had an annual turnover of US$18 billion in 2003."
RCI is a global provider of leisure travel services to businesses and consumers, and the worldwide leader in holiday property exchange. As a growth partner to its business clients, RCI leverages core competencies in branding, networking and partnering to unlock the value of leisure assets in holiday ownership, hospitality, real estate, travel & tourism, and with affinities. RCI has 3,700 resorts worldwide and on an annual basis arranges two million exchanges for its 3 million members globally. It is a subsidiary of Cendant Corporation (NYSE: CD), a provider of travel and real estate services which had an annual turnover of US$18 billion in 2003."
Active Hotels: travmedia.com
travmedia.comtive Hotels, one of Europe’s leading online hotel reservations providers, has been ranked by the Sunday Times amongst the 100 fastest growing technology companies
Thomsonfly.com: From March 2005 flights to European beach, leisure and city destinations from Bournemouth Airport travmedia.com
travmedia.com: "Low fares airline Thomsonfly.com has announced today that it will offer flights to a range of European beach, leisure and city destinations from Bournemouth Airport starting in March next year."
Trailfinders: Best Specialist Travel Company : Telegraph Travel Awards 2004 travmedia.com
travmedia.com: "For the fourth time in four years Trailfinders has been awarded The Best Specialist Travel Company by The Telegraph Travel Awards 2004...
One of the most interesting trends to emerge from this year's poll is that, while holidaymakers are travelling increasingly farther afield (South Africa, New Zealand and the United States were especially popular), a similar number are choosing to holiday at home"
One of the most interesting trends to emerge from this year's poll is that, while holidaymakers are travelling increasingly farther afield (South Africa, New Zealand and the United States were especially popular), a similar number are choosing to holiday at home"
Ebbokers shares rise: takeover talk & profileActive Investor Toolkit | Reuters.com
Active Investor Toolkit | Reuters.com: "Ebookers shares soar on renewed takeover hope"
lastminute has created a new role of Chief Information Officer eyefortravel.com
eyefortravel.com - Travel Distribution News, Events and Analysis: "As part of its ongoing strategic business review, lastminute.com has created a new role of Chief Information Officer (CIO) to manage its global technology team"
Wednesday, October 13, 2004
Forbes.com: Yahoo Europe Names Chappaz President
Forbes.com: Yahoo Europe Names Chappaz President: "Pierre Chappaz president and Dominique Vidal chief operating officer of Yahoo Europe. "
Opodod using Multimap.com to provide location-based information eyefortravel.com
eyefortravel.com - Travel Distribution News, Events and Analysis: "Multimap.com, Europes leading online mapping company, today announced the deployment of its Storefinder, Travel Directions and Portal services on www.opodo.co.uk, www.opodo.fr, and www.opodo.de."
New flight consolidator release eyefortravel.com -
eyefortravel.com - Travel Distribution News, Events and Analysis: "Flightpath Information Systems has released its latest product, Flightpath Online"
Consolidators: Western Europe
A full one week trial is available.
Consolidators: Western Europe
A full one week trial is available.
AirFare Simplification Procedures start 15 January 2005 eyefortravel.com
eyefortravel.com - Travel Distribution News, Events and Analysis: "The Fare Simplification Procedures"
lastminute.com has created a new role of Chief Information Officer eyefortravel.com
eyefortravel.com - Travel Distribution News, Events and Analysis: "lastminute.com has created a new role of Chief Information Officer (CIO) to manage its global technology team."
Tuesday, October 12, 2004
Competitor: RoomRez, UK Launch: Small chains can 'compete with Hiltons of this world' - 12-Oct-04.
Small chains can 'compete with Hiltons of this world' - 12-Oct-04.: "Australian hotel booking solutions provider, RoomRez, has launched in the UK"
Myhotels first used RoomRez to undertake keyword optimisation with Google in August, at a cost of around £250. According to myhotels managing director, Patrick Wennerland, this generated a more than 30% spike in online revenue....
Clifford Giles , RoomRez vice-president of sales and marketing Europe, said: "Through search engine optimisation and through effective distribution and marketing hotels etc can leverage the internet as a booking platform."
Myhotels booking form
Andy Thrasyvoulou is the architect owner ("and visionary") of the myhotel brand.
Myhotels first used RoomRez to undertake keyword optimisation with Google in August, at a cost of around £250. According to myhotels managing director, Patrick Wennerland, this generated a more than 30% spike in online revenue....
Clifford Giles , RoomRez vice-president of sales and marketing Europe, said: "Through search engine optimisation and through effective distribution and marketing hotels etc can leverage the internet as a booking platform."
Myhotels booking form
Andy Thrasyvoulou is the architect owner ("and visionary") of the myhotel brand.
Monday, October 11, 2004
"Top 10 Global 'Travel - Destinations and Accommodation' sites eyefortravel.com - Travel Distribution News, Events and Analysis
eyefortravel.com - Travel Distribution News, Events and Analysis: "Top 10 Global 'Travel - Destinations and Accommodation' sites for the week ending 9 October, 2004 based on VISITS"
International visitor statistics travmedia.com
travmedia.com: "Strong Growth For British Tourism " reports 8% increase on same period previous year.
WTM resources and website travmedia.com
travmedia.comWORLD TRAVEL MARKET PICTURE LIBRARY
· High resolution World Travel Market pictures can be accessed speedily and efficiently via the online World Travel Market Picture Library.
· Log on to www.wtmlondon.com
· Click on Press & PR on left hand side of screen and then click to enter library. When prompted, please key in your name and company for our records.
· You will find a wide selection of logos, general views and specific pictures with captions, depicting aspects of the event. These will be regularly updated.
· Click on the thumbnail of your choice to see a larger version of the picture
· Click on the download button in the left margin
· Save as a jpg. file
· Open the file after saving to your system.
· High resolution World Travel Market pictures can be accessed speedily and efficiently via the online World Travel Market Picture Library.
· Log on to www.wtmlondon.com
· Click on Press & PR on left hand side of screen and then click to enter library. When prompted, please key in your name and company for our records.
· You will find a wide selection of logos, general views and specific pictures with captions, depicting aspects of the event. These will be regularly updated.
· Click on the thumbnail of your choice to see a larger version of the picture
· Click on the download button in the left margin
· Save as a jpg. file
· Open the file after saving to your system.
ITA Software: airfare pricing and booking system
ITA Software: Welcome: customers include "Orbitz, Air Canada, Alaska Airlines, Alitalia, America West Airlines, Continental Airlines, Galileo, Cheap Tickets, Accovia, NLG "
Competitors relationships by ELLEN CREAGER: Things get cozy online at hotel sites
ELLEN CREAGER: Things get cozy online at hotel sites: ELLEN CREAGER: Things get cozy online at hotel sites: "Many big travel Web sites that appear to be competitors actually are closer kin than the Clampetts."
Covers Orbitz, travelocity, Expedia and Yahoo plus related companies.
Covers Orbitz, travelocity, Expedia and Yahoo plus related companies.
Sunday, October 10, 2004
Boston.com / Travel / Expedia vs. InterContinental more comments
Boston.com / Travel / Expedia vs. InterContinental: "The president of Expedia.com, the online travel agency, says consumers don't need a one-stop shop for travel...
What consumers want in a travel website, said Steven McArthur, is a large selection of air and hotel offerings at competitive prices."
What consumers want in a travel website, said Steven McArthur, is a large selection of air and hotel offerings at competitive prices."
Saturday, October 09, 2004
Kayak LAunch; Travel Vets Launch Beta of 'Google for Travel'
Travel Vets Launch Beta of 'Google for Travel': "Veterans of Orbitz, Travelocity and Expedia have teamed to launch a new travel search company, Kayak.com, a public beta of which launched this week. Executives say it will possess Google-like objectivity, Amazon.com-like personalization features and an Overture-like ad auction model, when it launches officially later this year"
Friday, October 08, 2004
Stats for targeting by area and age More people opt for DIY holidays - poll - 08-Oct-04.
More people opt for DIY holidays - poll - 08-Oct-04.: "the percentage booking travel and accommodation separately has risen to 41%, up from 38% in March."
Thursday, October 07, 2004
Galileo signs Best Western to highest level of GDS connectivity eyefortravel.com
Update and details eyefortravel.com - Travel Distribution News, Events and Analysis: "Inside Shopper is a Galileo travel technology that interfaces directly with the hotel group's central reservation system (CRS). Galileo International, a leading global distribution system (GDS), "
Sabre Holdings third quarter conference call to be broadcast live online eyefortravel.com
eyefortravel.com - Travel Distribution News, Events and Analysis: "The third quarter, 2004 earnings conference call of Sabre Holdings, retailer of travel products and provider of travel distribution and technology solutions, will be broadcast live over the Internet at 9am to 10am CDT on Thursday, October 28."
British Airways Flight Tracker txt messages travmedia.com
travmedia.com: "
British Airways has launched a six-month trial of an innovative text message service called Flight Tracker"
British Airways has launched a six-month trial of an innovative text message service called Flight Tracker"
Consumer WebWatch: An Examination of Travel Web Sites Selling International Airfare
Consumer WebWatch: An Examination of Travel Web Sites Selling International Airfare: "An In-Depth Examination of Travel Web Sites Selling
International Airline Tickets
Published: Sept. 22, 2004
A Research Report Prepared for Consumer WebWatch by:
William J. McGee, Consultant, Consumer WebWatch, Yonkers, N.Y."
eyefortravel.com - Travel Distribution News, Events and Analysis: "According to online travel site, Travelbiz.com.au, a study of 16 international websites has found that the online fares quoted are regularly incorrect or unavailab
The travelbiz article states that the study, www.consumerwebwatch.org/news/internationalairfare/TOC, which ran 900 queries across the 16 sites, claims that the lowest fare quoted by the US airline-backed Orbitz.com (acquired last week by Cendant) was incorrect 26% of the time, and one in five of the site's fares could not be booked. Expedia.com and Travelocity.com apparently showed inaccurate results 7% and 2% of the time, respectively."
International Airline Tickets
Published: Sept. 22, 2004
A Research Report Prepared for Consumer WebWatch by:
William J. McGee, Consultant, Consumer WebWatch, Yonkers, N.Y."
eyefortravel.com - Travel Distribution News, Events and Analysis: "According to online travel site, Travelbiz.com.au, a study of 16 international websites has found that the online fares quoted are regularly incorrect or unavailab
The travelbiz article states that the study, www.consumerwebwatch.org/news/internationalairfare/TOC, which ran 900 queries across the 16 sites, claims that the lowest fare quoted by the US airline-backed Orbitz.com (acquired last week by Cendant) was incorrect 26% of the time, and one in five of the site's fares could not be booked. Expedia.com and Travelocity.com apparently showed inaccurate results 7% and 2% of the time, respectively."
Radisson : Web self check-ins:: Travel Weekly
:: Travel Weekly - The National Newspaper of the Travel Industry ::: "an e-mailed notice that enables them to check in at the Radisson Web site (www.radisson.com) prior to 6 p.m. on date of arrival and at least two hours prior to arrival at the hotel. At the site, they can make a request for a specific room location and certain amenities such as high-speed Internet access, among other things. "
Tuesday, October 05, 2004
InterActive out of ebookers race - 05-Oct-04.
InterActive out of ebookers race - 05-Oct-04.: "InterActiveCorp (IAC) has ruled itself out of a possible takeover of ebookers, for the moment....this leaves only Sabre Travel Network and Cendant as possible buyers
IAC owns a number of online brands including Expedia, Hotels.com, TV Travel Shop and Ticketmaster."
IAC owns a number of online brands including Expedia, Hotels.com, TV Travel Shop and Ticketmaster."
Yahoo official release for local search engine"DMNews.com | News | Article
DMNews.com | News | Article: "After two months of testing, Yahoo officially released its local search engine...with full eight-week marketing campaign
Yahoo Local combines Web search, maps, business listings and consumer reviews in a search engine connecting consumers with local information".
Extra features:
More data sources, majority from infoUSA
Improved mapping
Search suggestion tool.
A reportedly improved relevance algorithm
Local tab on HP
To be added to search toolbar
Paid search ads from its Overture
No need for a web site:will display hours, address and phone number
"Interactive bus shelters in New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco, which let commuters do local searches on a 42-inch plasma screen and print them out. "
Yahoo Local combines Web search, maps, business listings and consumer reviews in a search engine connecting consumers with local information".
Extra features:
More data sources, majority from infoUSA
Improved mapping
Search suggestion tool.
A reportedly improved relevance algorithm
Local tab on HP
To be added to search toolbar
Paid search ads from its Overture
No need for a web site:will display hours, address and phone number
"Interactive bus shelters in New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco, which let commuters do local searches on a 42-inch plasma screen and print them out. "
Lonely Planet "content not technology, is the future of online travel" travmedia.com
travmedia.com: "Authoritative, trustworthy content, and not technology, is the future of online travel"
Key Facts and Brand:
% of profit from each book is donated to aid projects, human rights campaigns & to wildlife conservation
Lonely Planet Images, an online image library of over 250,000 travel-related images
Beb division providing bespoke travel content for online brands
Lonely Planet is the largest independent publisher of travel guides
Won various website awards for design and content
Mission: "to allow online content to accentuate the unique travel experiences of its customers"
Key Facts and Brand:
% of profit from each book is donated to aid projects, human rights campaigns & to wildlife conservation
Lonely Planet Images, an online image library of over 250,000 travel-related images
Beb division providing bespoke travel content for online brands
Lonely Planet is the largest independent publisher of travel guides
Won various website awards for design and content
Mission: "to allow online content to accentuate the unique travel experiences of its customers"
Monday, October 04, 2004
lastminute.com - Investor Relations
Eyefortravel reports: eyefortravel.com - Travel Distribution News, Events and Analysis: "lastminute.com will outline its current outlook for the fourth quarter, 2004. It will also provide more details on its 10% cost savings initiative."lastminute.com - Investor Relations: "To download the presentation made to analysts and shareholders on 4 October please click here "
Friday, October 01, 2004
Big News re Yahoo and RSS MediaDailyNews 10-01-04..
MediaDailyNews 10-01-04: "Yahoo! has quietly made several key enhancements to its RSS offerings that industry analysts say mark the first big push to take the format mainstream. RSS (rich site summary, or really simple syndication) feeds have been available on Yahoo!'s My Yahoo! service for few months, but on Tuesday the portal unveiled a searchable database of more than 150,000 content and service feeds for a new beta version of My Yahoo!, as well as an RSS information page....
"RSS will absolutely be the key enabler of information going forward," Farros said, noting that the implications for widespread adoption move beyond merely distributing and receiving content. He said the technology could potentially impact everything from e-mail and e-commerce to the way corporations maintain their massive internal databases."
"RSS will absolutely be the key enabler of information going forward," Farros said, noting that the implications for widespread adoption move beyond merely distributing and receiving content. He said the technology could potentially impact everything from e-mail and e-commerce to the way corporations maintain their massive internal databases."
Cendant and Orbitz Updates: C holdings Eye For Travel, Weekly Newsletter
Weekly NewsletterTravel website Orbitz has been sold to Cendant Corp. Orbitz had formerly been controversially owned by a consortium of US airlines. This gives the airlines a nice $1.2 billion cash sum that they desperately need, and makes Orbitz the second largest travel provider on the internet. Expedia is the largest with 49% market share, then Cendant's combined operations with 22% and Travelocity is now number 3 with 20%.
That leaves just 9% for everyone else - so much for the internet making it easy for little guys to compete with the big guys!.
You might not be familiar with the Cendant name. Here's a list of companies they own : Days Inn, Howard Johnson, Knights Inn, Ramada Inn, Super 8, Travelodge, Villager, Wingate Inn, Hotel Dynamics, Fairfield Resorts, RCI, Trendwest Resorts, Cuendet, Holiday Cottages Group, Landal GreenParks, Novasol, Holiday Network, Welcome Holidays, Ltd., Avis, Budget, First Fleet, PHH Arval, Wright Express, Galileo International, THOR, Galileo International, HotelClub.com, RatesToGo.com, Travel 2 and Travel 4, Travelwire, Travelport, CheapTickets.com, Trip.com, Cendant Travel, Lodging.com, Neat Group, Shepherd Systems, TRUST International and WizCom, in addition to companies in real estate, mortgage, marketing, and various other fields.
Cendant�s deal makes it No. 2 online travel agency - 01-Oct-04.: "Cendant�s deal makes it No. 2 online travel agency"
"A Cendant spokesperson said key statistics for the transaction include these:
· The combination of Orbitz and Cendant properties CheapTickets.com and Lodging.com enables the company to reach more than 24 million Web site visitors each month.
· Together, Cendant TDS and Orbitz captured more than $6.9 billion in gross bookings in 2003...
the dealis "still has to be accepted by regulatory approvals, which are expected to come in November. If approved, the deal with provide cash to the five money-losing airlines that own most of Orbitz’s stock. They include American, United, Delta, Northwest and Continental.
Orbitz, the third-largest independent online travel sales Web site, was founded in 2000 by the top five US carriers, which was subsequently modeled by its European and Asian counterparts Opodo.com and Suji.com.
This transaction will make Cendant Travel Distribution Services the 4th largest global travel company behind #1 American Express Travel; # 2 Carlson Wagonlit Travel; and # 3 Interactivecorp, who owns Expedia, Hotels.com, Hotwire, Interval, TV Travel Shop in UK, Classic Custom Vactions, TravelNow, etc. Travelocity was # 6 in 2003.
· With Orbitz, Cendant has a 22% market share of the online travel industry."
That leaves just 9% for everyone else - so much for the internet making it easy for little guys to compete with the big guys!.
You might not be familiar with the Cendant name. Here's a list of companies they own : Days Inn, Howard Johnson, Knights Inn, Ramada Inn, Super 8, Travelodge, Villager, Wingate Inn, Hotel Dynamics, Fairfield Resorts, RCI, Trendwest Resorts, Cuendet, Holiday Cottages Group, Landal GreenParks, Novasol, Holiday Network, Welcome Holidays, Ltd., Avis, Budget, First Fleet, PHH Arval, Wright Express, Galileo International, THOR, Galileo International, HotelClub.com, RatesToGo.com, Travel 2 and Travel 4, Travelwire, Travelport, CheapTickets.com, Trip.com, Cendant Travel, Lodging.com, Neat Group, Shepherd Systems, TRUST International and WizCom, in addition to companies in real estate, mortgage, marketing, and various other fields.
Cendant�s deal makes it No. 2 online travel agency - 01-Oct-04.: "Cendant�s deal makes it No. 2 online travel agency"
"A Cendant spokesperson said key statistics for the transaction include these:
· The combination of Orbitz and Cendant properties CheapTickets.com and Lodging.com enables the company to reach more than 24 million Web site visitors each month.
· Together, Cendant TDS and Orbitz captured more than $6.9 billion in gross bookings in 2003...
the dealis "still has to be accepted by regulatory approvals, which are expected to come in November. If approved, the deal with provide cash to the five money-losing airlines that own most of Orbitz’s stock. They include American, United, Delta, Northwest and Continental.
Orbitz, the third-largest independent online travel sales Web site, was founded in 2000 by the top five US carriers, which was subsequently modeled by its European and Asian counterparts Opodo.com and Suji.com.
This transaction will make Cendant Travel Distribution Services the 4th largest global travel company behind #1 American Express Travel; # 2 Carlson Wagonlit Travel; and # 3 Interactivecorp, who owns Expedia, Hotels.com, Hotwire, Interval, TV Travel Shop in UK, Classic Custom Vactions, TravelNow, etc. Travelocity was # 6 in 2003.
· With Orbitz, Cendant has a 22% market share of the online travel industry."
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