Computer reservations system
Computer reservation systems ( CRSs) pooling information on prices, availability and booking of travel packages, flights, hotels, cars, ferries, cruises, trains, buses and other products in large data centers.
It is usually the term Global Distribution System ( GDS ) was used. A global distribution system (GDS ) is a medium query with the travel agencies and vacancies information and capture customer data and services, process, or can be booked. Typically, there are systems that perceive an ( information- ) logistic function. Keep current information on all available providers willing and have the necessary infrastructure for data transmission. System stakeholders are:
The main provider to the global systems are the airlines which had also originally developed these systems. To complete the offer, the large hotel and rental car chains were included in the systems. It also gives you some tour operators, cruise and rail companies. The distribution systems are no longer in possession of the system participants.
The global distribution systems have the task of product and collective representation and the reservation of travel services of all system participants. For this purpose, the systems have communication centers for global connectivity to the system users. In addition, modern user interfaces facilitate the use of the systems. After several consolidations, there are only three global systems: Amadeus, Galileo / Travelport and Sabre.
On the user side, especially the travel agents are mentioned. Their mission is to provide all travel services to the end customer. This was primarily the global systems are used. Today, the end users with the help of internet booking engines (IBE ) are increasingly connected directly to the GDS. Therefore, the information advantage of the travel agent is not required.
Background
In the travel industry it is common that travel agents do not sell their products, but it provides on behalf of the tour operator. As trade representatives or brokers, travel agents want this to as many service providers (Hotels, catering and transport companies ) rely to make its customers attractive offers. This can not be achieved by the travel agency 's own computer systems. Economic sense would also be a direct connection to the service providers, because it would then have multiple parallel connections are switched to a travel agent, if more than one service provider to be on offer. Apart from that would be associated with specific input screens with a unmanageable training needs for travel agents direct access to the various systems of the service providers.
For this reason, computer reservation systems are used. Technically, this can be realized by connecting the data center of the CRS provider to many different service providers over which the respective requests from the travel agents will be forwarded directly to the different providers. Entries are made on standard and product specific customized masks that apply to all connected service provider, whereby the training requirements for travel agencies is reduced to a minimum. The CRS also take over the accounting of expenses incurred booking costs and, if necessary, the payment of incentives, ie remuneration of the service provider for travel agencies. The CRS but also provide evaluations for the back office systems of the travel agencies and offer add-on products to support sales processes.
With the increasing expansion of the Internet, partly monopolistic position of the CRS began to crumble. The CRS trying to meet the additional products ( such as yield management and geo-marketing ) and services. Buy Partial or create the CRS and Internet portals to use this channel for themselves can.
Worldwide, four computerized reservation systems have been established with a significant market share:
- Amadeus
- Galileo ( Travelport )
- Sabre
- Worldspan ( Travelport )
Not always clear-cut is the distinction between the so-called CR ( CRS) and DG (GDS ) systems.
While the CRS mainly deals with the actual processing of reservations ( eg directly at the hotel), the Global Distribution Systems ( GDS) global databases that manage the reservation data only. Without an appropriate CRS but can not usually access the GDS. For the larger systems mentioned above, however, the transitions are often blurred, since both GDS and CRS are offered from a single source. Basically, however, there are various systems in the booking process.