Kate Harden-England

📌 Tripadvisor teams up with travel tech specialist DerbySoft to test display advertising for DerbySoft's 6,000 hotel partners on Tripadvisor's platform. This collaboration aims to target location-specific audiences and enhance campaign tracking with incremental measurement. The initiative is in the testing phase, seeking to boost visibility and clicks by reaching consumers further up the purchase funnel, complementing existing products like Sponsored Placements and Business Advantage. Key figures Toni Marti and Christine Maguire express confidence in the partnership's potential to drive hotel success and platform efficiency.

📌 Travel technology provider Sabre is expanding its team due to customer growth and demand in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, focusing on sales, strategy, and customer support. New hires will be in the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain, Portugal, Saudi Arabia, and other countries. The expansion aims to enhance service delivery, support strategic initiatives, and meet the needs of a growing customer base. Positions will cover Technology Consultancy, Product Support, and Sales & Account Management. 🧳

🛏 SHR partners with Sweden's largest hotel, Gothia Towers, to enhance digital transformation using AI-driven booking engine and CRM. Gothia Towers, a 1,200-room hotel located in Gothenburg, implemented SHR's solutions in October last year. New systems aim to boost direct bookings and personalize guest experiences, set to go live by November 18. The partnership expansion reflects Gothia Towers' confidence in SHR's client support.

📱 TourReview, an AI-driven tours and attractions review platform, has partnered with software provider Fareharbor to integrate their booking system through an API connection. This allows TourReview's customers to collect reviews directly from tourists booking on tour operators' websites. The integration offers tools for improving online reputation and business, including sentiment analysis, geo-localization analysis, instant translations, and exportable reports. Juana Muro, COO of TourReview, expressed enthusiasm about the collaboration's potential to drive sales.

✈ Greater Bay Airlines (GBA), Hong Kong's newest carrier, is now accessible through Travelport+ platform, catering to seven destinations in the Asia-Pacific region. This multi-year partnership aims to facilitate GBA's expansion by connecting it with Travelport’s global travel retailer network. Agencies can book GBA fares and ancillary services, utilizing Travelport’s content and branding merchandising solutions. COO of GBA, Stephen Loh, and Damian Hickey, Travelport's global head of travel partners, emphasize the enhancement of traveler experiences and retailing processes.

✈ Sabre has renewed its distribution deal with Delta Air Lines for multiple years, including NDC content. Delta announced its selling and servicing transformation with NDC earlier in the year. Sabre-connected travel agents gain access to traditional EDIFACT and NDC Delta content, with an aim to integrate NDC into Sabre’s marketplace. Delta’s Jeff Lobl and Sabre’s Roshan Mendis emphasize the benefits of the extension and collaboration for optimal travel experiences tailored to customer needs.

📅 In its 25th anniversary month, iSeatz launched LXP, a travel loyalty technology platform designed to enhance agility and efficiency for businesses. LXP, notable for partnering with Delta in 2007 and American Express Travel in 2012, supports bespoke client services with an API-first microservices framework, promising adaptable solutions to meet market demands and improve customer experiences. Founder and CEO Kenneth Purcell emphasizes iSeatz's commitment to customer-centric innovation.