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Tag: BTIQ-Enl

  • TripStax's Landers to Assume Global Sales Role

    TripStax's Landers to Assume Global Sales Role

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    Travel management technology provider TripStax has named Eoin Landers global head of sales, effective Jan. 1.

    The role, a new position for the company, expands Landers’ current scope overseeing TripStax’s sales in the North America region. Landers—whose previous experience includes VP of product for SalesTrip and senior business development manager for SAP Concur—joined TripStax in August as VP of sales for the region on a consultancy basis and since then has been “winning significant new business” from U.S. travel management companies, according to TripStax. He will be responsible for TripStax’s business development globally.

    “Eoin has a unique track record in business development and product innovation, combined with expertise in the technology side of the industry,” TripStax CEO Jack Ramsey said in a statement. “He is also multilingual and is skilled in managing multinational teams. This will be invaluable as we continue to grow our customer base globally.”

    Also on Jan. 1, TripStax chief strategy officer David Chappell, who joined the company in June, will become the company’s chief product officer, another new role for TripStax that will be responsible for leading its product and implementation divisions. Both Landers and Chappell will report to Ramsey.

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  • Amadeus Names New Leader for Travel Sellers in India

    Amadeus Names New Leader for Travel Sellers in India

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    Amadeus has appointed Sandeep Dwivedi to oversee its commercial activities with travel sellers across India and the rest of the subcontinent, the company announced.

    Dwivedi—a longtime executive with InterGlobal Technology Quotient, which distributes Travelport in the region—now is Amadeus’ managing director for travel sellers in India. That responsibility previously fell to Ramona Bohwongprasert, Amadeus’ SVP for travel sellers across the Asia-Pacific region as well inside sales and startups in Southeast Asia. Bohwongprasert will continue to oversee Amadeus’ commercial activities with travel sellers in Southeast Asia and will now be responsible for inside sales and startups across the full Asia-Pacific region.

    Amadeus EVP for the travel unit and managing director for the Asia-Pacific region Javier Laforgue in a statement said the change comes amid a “rapid pace” of growth for India’s travel industry. 

    “We are excited to bring Sandeep onboard as he is a trusted leader that understands the vision of Amadeus in India and the subcontinent,” according to Laforgue. “We have been present in the region for over two decades, and this appointment further underscores our commitment to serving the technology needs of the travel industry there.”

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  • Best Western to Add Tesla Universal EV Chargers

    Best Western to Add Tesla Universal EV Chargers

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    Best Western has partnered with Tesla to add universal electronic vehicle charges at “select” North America hotels in early 2024, the hotel company announced Tuesday. 

    The hotel company will install Tesla’s Universal Wall Connectors, which Tesla unveiled in August and which it says can charge any North American brand of electric vehicle. 

    Best Western did not confirm how many universal EV chargers would be available across its North American properties, nor how many properties would participate in the Tesla partnership. The hotel company in a statement said it had “plans to expand” the program internationally.

    Best Western’s deal with Tesla follows a Hilton Worldwide agreement, announced in September, to launch 20,000 Tesla universal electronic vehicle chargers at 2,000 North American Hilton properties by early 2024. 

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  • American, Philippine Airlines Launch Codeshare

    American, Philippine Airlines Launch Codeshare

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    American Airlines and Philippine Airlines, the flag carrier of the Philippines, have launched a codeshare partnership, American announced Tuesday. The agreement allows American to place its code on Philippine-operated flights to Manila and Cebu via Tokyo, as well as to Manila from Honolulu and Guam. Philippine will place its code on American-operated flights between Los Angeles and each Atlanta, Denver, Houston, Las Vegas, Miami, Orlando and Washington, D.C. 

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  • Accor Plans 80 Hotel Openings in 2024

    Accor Plans 80 Hotel Openings in 2024

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    Accor Group plans to open more than 80 new hotels globally in 2024, including several international brand debuts, the company announced Tuesday. 

    Accor expects to debut several brands internationally next year, including its first Hyde-branded hotel in Australia, dubbed Hyde Perth, the company said. 

    Other international brand debuts in 2024 include Accor’s first SLS-branded property in Europe—the SLS Barcelona—and the first Mövenpick property in Poland. Accor also plans to launch its first Handwritten Collection property in Paris in 2024, alongside other brand debuts, including Novotel in Spain, Tribe in Italy and Ibis Styles Resort in Brazil.

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  • DidaTravel: China's Visa Exemption Boosts Hotel Bookings

    DidaTravel: China's Visa Exemption Boosts Hotel Bookings

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    Hotel bookings in China have grown significantly from countries covered under a temporary visa exemption implemented this month, according to data from China-based global travel distribution company DidaTravel.

    As of Dec. 1, China allows visitors from six countries—France, Germany, Italy, Malaysia, the Netherlands and Spain—to enter China without a visa for stays of up to 15 days. The policy, which will continue until Nov. 30 of next year, applies to business travelers as well as tourists and those visiting family.

    In the first week that policy was implemented, from Dec. 1 to Dec. 7, hotel bookings in China from those countries increased 50 percent compared with the previous week, according to DidaTravel. Bookings from Spain were double the previous week, and bookings from Malaysia were up 67 percent, the company reported. Those two countries, along with Italy, have been among the top 20 markets for inbound travel to China this year.

    “We were really excited about the growth opportunity for China’s inbound tourism sector as a result of this news, and these initial figures are very encouraging,” DidaTravel founder and CEO Rikin Wu said in a statement.

    A China foreign ministry spokesperson last week said daily average tourist numbers from those six countries were 39 percent higher on the first three days of December compared with the last day of November, according to Reuters. China will continue to work with its visa policies “to create more favorable conditions” for easier cross-border travel, he said in the report.

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  • Expensify Integrates with Booking.com for Business

    Expensify Integrates with Booking.com for Business

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    Expense and payment app Expensify has integrated with Booking.com for Business to automatically upload travel receipts into Expensify at the time of booking, the companies announced. With the integration, travelers will not need to manually enter data from the booking into the expense platform, as “every expense is automatically captured seamlessly, eliminating one of the biggest pain points for travelers and companies alike,” Booking.com for Business director Joshua Wood said in a statement. Expensify said the integration is the “first expense integration to bring significant benefits to business travelers” on Booking.com for Business, which is powered by Serko’s Zeno tool and in August announced a partnership with Traxo for data capture.

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  • Choice Launches Hostile Bid for Wyndham

    Choice Launches Hostile Bid for Wyndham

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    Choice Hotels International on Tuesday formally launched a hostile bid to acquire Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, the company announced. Choice confirmed its ownership of 1.5 million shares of Wyndham stock—valued at more than $110 million—and said it is preparing to nominate a slate of candidates to Wyndham’s board of directors, “in order to present its compelling proposal directly to Wyndham.”

    Choice in October publicly offered to acquire Wyndham in a $7.8 billion cash-and-stock deal, and revised the offer in November. Wyndham’s board rejected both offers, calling them undervalued and citing possible objections from federal regulators. 

    Choice has not changed the terms of its deal from its November offer, it said. Wyndham didn’t immediately comment on Choice’s Tuesday announcement. 

    Choice said it had already met with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission “on a voluntary basis to discuss the pro-competitive nature of the transaction,” and would file with the FTC the necessary notifications and reports to move ahead with the acquisition, thus “starting the clock” on the transaction. Choice in a statement said it “is committed to completing the transaction within one year.”

    “While we would have preferred to come to a negotiated agreement, the Wyndham Board’s refusal to explore a transaction has left us with no choice but to take our proposal directly to Wyndham’s shareholders,” Choice president and CEO Patrick Pacious said in a statement. “Wyndham chose to publicly reject our last proposal without any engagement even after we addressed their concerns, including adding significant regulatory protections for their shareholders.”

    Confirming November reports that it would seek to nominate directors to serve on Wyndham’s board, Choice said it is “actively” pursuing candidates and “intends to nominate a slate of directors” at Wyndham’s 2024 annual shareholder meeting,” the company said. 

    RELATED: Wyndham Board Again Rebuffs Choice Acquisition Bid

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  • ATPCO Acquires Data Intelligence Platform 3Victors

    ATPCO Acquires Data Intelligence Platform 3Victors

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    ATPCO has acquired data intelligence platform 3Victors “to further enhance the company’s creation of industry tools that support the future of modern airline retailing,” ATPCO announced Tuesday. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. 3Victors will operate as a subsidiary of ATPCO.

    Together, the companies will use new datasets, machine learning and artificial intelligence to enhance retailing solutions, according to ATPCO. 3Victors data platform will complement ATPCO’s offer content by providing a real-time response of industry travel demand, while supplementing fares not currently filed through ATPCO, according to the company. 

    “The need for airlines to be able to dynamically bundle and price is crystal clear,” ATPCO CEO Alex Zoghlin said in a statement. “Still, as airlines move towards dynamic offers, the industry will need more types of data and capabilities to drive their internal processes, and there will be a gap in the current data to maintain accurate pricing. … The data required to construct offers will change. … The acquisition of 3Victors will help ATPCO and the industry get there quicker with more depth and breadth of data and AI capabilities.”

    With these enhanced data capabilities, an airline can deliver offers, including the amenities and ancillaries’ customers want to buy, at a personalized and competitive price, according to ATPCO.

    3Victors is ATPCO’s third acquisition, following the purchase of Routehappy in 2018 and the purchase of SITA’s Airfare Insight fare management system in 2021.

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  • Flight Centre Launches AI Team, Led by Sam Co-Founder Lopez

    Flight Centre Launches AI Team, Led by Sam Co-Founder Lopez

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    Flight Centre Travel Group has as established an “AI Center of Excellence” centered around artificial intelligence adoption and integration in its corporate travel businesses, FCM and Corporate Traveler, the company announced.

    Adrian Lopez, who most recently was FCM Digital’s global chief technology officer, will lead the new group as head of AI for corporate. Lopez was a co-founder of the Sam mobile app travel assistant, which Flight Centre invested in and later acquired, at which point Lopez joined the group and helped integrate Sam across Flight Centre’s products.

    Based in Greece, Lopez now will lead a team setting the group’s corporate brands’ AI strategy, implementing best practices and doing research, training and support around the technology. The group aims to leverage AI technology to improve productivity and workflow, enabling the human workforce to focus on more “creative-driven projects,” according to Flight Centre.

    “The disruptive benefits of AI will enable us to work more efficiently, identify new ways to service our clients and reach the next generation of business travelers,” Lopez said in a statement.

    Lopez will report to John Morhous, Flight Centre Travel Group’s global chief experience officer of its corporate brands.

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  • Red Roof Confirms Ransomware Attack

    Red Roof Confirms Ransomware Attack

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    Lodging provider Red Roof has confirmed the company experienced a ransomware attack on Sept. 23, involving a “limited subset” of data that did not include guest information, the company announced Friday. 

    According to Red Roof, the company discovered “unauthorized access” that presented “hallmarks of a ransomware attack” Sept. 23. In response, the company “immediately” moved impacted systems offline and began “implementing software and hardware to prevent, detect and respond to unauthorized activity,” the company said in a statement. In doing so, Red Roof confined the security breach to a small number of systems, according to the company.

    Following an internal investigation, Red Roof confirmed no guest data was involved in the breach, but a “limited number” of information was copied from the company’s network.

    Additionally, Red Roof confirmed the individuals “whose information was potentially involved,” the company said, adding that there is “currently no indication that any Information [copied from Red Roof’s network] has been misused for identity theft or fraud in connection with this Incident.”

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  • Sonder Names Former Radisson Exec Buoy CCO

    Sonder Names Former Radisson Exec Buoy CCO

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    Short-term accommodation provider Sonder has appointed former Radisson executive Tom Buoy executive vice president and chief commercial officer, effective immediately, the company announced Monday. The news coincides with the “upcoming departure” of Sonder chief revenue officer Shruti Challa, the company announced.

    In joining the company’s management, Buoy has resigned his position on Sonder’s board of directors, the company said. In the newly created role of EVP and CCO, Buoy will lead “all aspects of revenue generation and strategy, including revenue management, marketing, sales and distribution,” the company said in a statement.

    Buoy formerly served as Radisson Hotel Group Americas’ EVP and chief commercial officer, and also served as interim CEO and board director. Buoy has also held positions with Extended Stay America and Morgans Hotel Group, formerly known as Ian Schrager Hotels.

    Challa is leaving Sonder to pursue “new opportunities,” Sonder co-founder and CEO Francis Davidson said in a statement. Challa will support “during the transition in an advisory capacity,” the company said. 

    Challa’s official departure date was not immediately disclosed.

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  • Navan Cuts 5 Percent of Workforce in 'Move Toward Profitability'

    Navan Cuts 5 Percent of Workforce in 'Move Toward Profitability'

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    Navan has reduced the size of its global workforce by 5 percent “to increase operations efficiencies,” a company spokesperson confirmed to BTN.

    The staff reductions at Navan, the former TripActions, were first reported this week by The Information, which said the layoffs affected about 145 people. The spokesperson said that while the company “has recorded strong growth over the past three years despite the challenges affecting our industry,” it is “refocusing our efforts to move faster toward profitability as we enter the next phase of the company.”

    Navan has been long-rumored to be planning an initial public offering, having reportedly filed confidential paperwork for the move more than a year ago. Business Insider in August reported that Navan CEO Ariel Cohen is eying April 2024 for an IPO, citing a confidential source.

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  • Accor Names Perez-Alvarado Orient Express CEO

    Accor Names Perez-Alvarado Orient Express CEO

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    Accor has named group chief strategy officer Gilda Perez-Alvarado CEO of its Orient Express brand, amid CEO Omer Acar’s shift to lead the company’s Fairmont Hotels and Resorts brand, effective Jan. 1, the company announced. Perez-Alvarado also will maintain her current title.

    Perez-Alvarado joined Accor from JLL Hotels & Hospitality in October. Acar, the current CEO of Orient Express and Raffles, has been named CEO of Fairmont, also effective Jan. 1. He also will remain Raffles CEO. 

    Acar joined Accor in March during the company’s executive restructuring. As CEO of Raffles and Fairmont, Acar “has the responsibility of representing Accor on the North American market,” the company said in a statement.

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  • Emburse Puts Cards on Mastercard Network

    Emburse Puts Cards on Mastercard Network

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    Emburse has partnered with Mastercard as the new payments network for Emburse Cards, which the travel and expense management provider said will add security and efficiency to its payments product.

    Among the security benefits, being on the Mastercard network will give Emburse Cards clients MasterCoverage and Mastercard ID Theft Protection to help guard against fraud and identity theft, according to Emburse. Cardholders also can access Mastercard’s HealthLock offering, which protects medical identities and data.

    The Mastercard network also will increase data capabilities of Emburse Cards, according to the company. Transaction details such as hotel and airline information from the network can be automatically populated into Emburse’s expense reporting products, which will give more detailed travel spend reporting and can in turn be used in supplier negotiations and policy strategy.

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  • Delta to Add Seattle-Taipei Service

    Delta to Add Seattle-Taipei Service

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    Delta Air Lines plans to add flights between Seattle and Taipei beginning June 6, pending government approval, the carrier announced Thursday. The route will operate daily, year-round on Airbus A330-900neo aircraft offering four cabins: Delta One Suites, Premium Select, Comfort Plus and Main.

    The new route is the first nonstop flight for Delta between the U.S. and Taipei, according to the carrier, which added that the last time Delta operated flights to Taiwan was in 2017 via Tokyo’s Narita International Airport. 

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  • Hyatt Expands Luxury Pipeline Amid 'Increased Demand'

    Hyatt Expands Luxury Pipeline Amid 'Increased Demand'

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    Hyatt Hotels Corp. has plans to open 37 luxury hotels and resorts globally through 2025 amid “increased demand” for luxury travel, the company announced Wednesday.  

    Hyatt’s plan includes international brand debuts for several Hyatt-branded properties, including the entrance of Park Hyatt properties in the U.K., Malaysia and Mexico, as well as the first Thompson Hotel-branded properties in Italy and Austria. Other brand debuts for the company include Hyatt’s first Andaz-branded property in the Caribbean, and the first Unbound Collection by Hyatt properties in India and the Nordic regions.

    With more than 70 percent of Hyatt’s “rooms categorized as luxury and upper upscale, the Hyatt portfolio has grown to meet increased demands for luxury and resort accommodations,” the company said. Some key Hyatt-brand openings expected next year and beyond include new properties from Park Hyatt, Grand Hyatt, Miraval, Andaz, Thompson Hotels and Dreams resorts, among others, according to the company.

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  • IATA Projects Continued Airline Profits into 2024

    IATA Projects Continued Airline Profits into 2024

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    Airline profitability for 2023 exceeded June projections from the International Air Transport Association, the organization announced Wednesday.

    IATA now projects global airline revenue for 2023 to reach $896 billion, $93 billion higher than forecast six months ago. Expenses also are anticipated to increase to $855 billion, $74 billion higher than the previous outlook. Still, IATA projects the industry’s net profit to reach $23.3 billion in 2023, significantly higher than the June forecast of $9.8 billion. 

    The improvement was driven by passenger business, revenue from which IATA projects to increase to $642 billion, $96 billion higher than the prior outlook, according to IATA. 

    Select Regional Performance

    North American carriers were the first to return to profitability in 2022 and continued to earn a profit in 2023, according to IATA. The region’s carriers are projected to report a net profit of $14.3 billion in 2023 and $14.4 billion in 2024. IATA projects traffic in 2024 to increase 6.3 percent year over year and 8.1 percent compared with 2019. Capacity is projected to be up 6 percent year over year, and 8.1 percent versus 2019.

    North American “consumer spending has remained solid, despite cost-of-living pressures, and the demand for air travel remains robust and is expected to outpace growth in capacity into 2024,” according to IATA.

    IATA projects European carriers to have a net profit of $7.7 billion in 2023 and $7.9 billion in 2024. Demand in 2024 is forecast to be 10.5 percent higher year over year and 7 percent higher compared with 2019 levels. IATA projects 2024 capacity to increase 8.8 percent versus a year prior and 7 percent compared with 2019.

    The key risks to Europe’s performance “relate to the tight labor market, and the war in Ukraine and in the Middle East,” according to IATA.

    Asia-Pacific carriers in 2023 are forecast to report a $100 million loss but return to a net profit of $1.1 billion in 2024. IATA projects year-over-year 2024 demand to increase 13.5 percent, but still lag 2019 levels by 1.4 percent. Capacity, too, is forecast for 10.6 percent growth versus 2023 but decrease by 1.4 percent versus 2019.

    “While some of the region’s main domestic markets recovered quickly from the pandemic, international travel to/from the region was subdued as China only eliminated the last of its international travel restrictions in mid-2023,” according to IATA.

    2024 Global Outlook

    IATA projects 2024 airline revenue to grow 7.6 percent year over year to a record $964 billion, generating an anticipated profit of $25.7 billion. Expenses are forecast to increase 6.9 percent to $914 billion. 

    Passenger revenue is projected to increase 12 percent year over year to $717 billion, with 40.1 million flights projected to be on offer, exceeding the 2019 level of 38.9 million and up from the 36.8 million flights expected in 2023. Total traffic in 2024, as measured in revenue passenger kilometers, is projected to be up 9.8 percent year over year, however IATA said 2024 will mark the end of the “dramatic year-on-year increases” the industry has seen during the recovery between 2021 and 2023.

    About 4.7 billion people are expected to travel in 2024, “an historic high that exceeds the pre-pandemic level of 4.5 billion recorded in 2019,” according to IATA.

    “Considering the major losses of recent years, the $25.7 billion net profit expected in 2024 is a tribute to aviation’s resilience,” IATA director general Willie Walsh said in a statement. “The speed of the recovery has been extraordinary; yet it also appears that the pandemic has cost aviation about four years of growth. From 2024, the outlook indicates that we can expect more normal growth patterns for both passenger and cargo.”

    IATA also warned that the industry profitability was “fragile” and could be affected by many factors, including global economic developments, war, continued supply-chain challenges and regulatory risk. 

    RELATED: IATA Upgrades 2023 Airline Profitability Outlook

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  • Travelport to Launch Virgin Atlantic NDC Content

    Travelport to Launch Virgin Atlantic NDC Content

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    Travelport has renewed and expanded its agreement with Virgin Atlantic to include New Distribution Capability content through the Travelport Plus platform, the travel technology company announced Thursday. No date was announced for when the NDC content would be available, only that it was “subject to implementation.”

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  • Christopherson Moves to Prime Numbers Reporting Platform

    Christopherson Moves to Prime Numbers Reporting Platform

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    Christopherson Business Travel is integrating Prime Numbers Technology’s new core reporting service as an expansion of the travel management company’s partnership with the data analytics provider, the companies announced.

    Prime’s core service is a platform with which TMCs can manage client-facing reports from Prime’s analytics and benchmarking, rather than having to work with another platform. Christopherson CEO Mike Cameron in a statement said the implementation “is already making a significant impact on our operations by streamlining processes and report consolidation.”

    Prime Numbers president Mark Bresnahan said the company has seen a “wave” of TMCs move their reporting to Prime’s platform this year, including Altour, Travel Leaders and Atlas Travel.

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