Local travel agencies told to realize Net value
Local travel agencies told to realize Net value
JAKARTA (JP): KLM Royal Dutch airlines called on Indonesian
travel agencies on Monday to adopt e-commerce or risk loosing
business to competitors with online ticket reservation services.
KLM warned that global airlines would eventually expand their
Indonesian distribution channels to include online ticketing, as
the development of this technology was inevitable.
"Travel agencies should not view e-commerce as a threat, but
must adopt its positive sides," KLM marketing manager Juanita
Wiyadharma said on the sidelines of a two-day seminar on
motivation skills, organized by KLM and its partners Alitalia and
Northwest.
Juanita said travel agencies would start competing against
online ticket reservation providers within the next three to five
years, when e-commerce would have become more popular in
Indonesia.
She cited the United States and Europe as two markets where
consumers had become accustomed to reserving flights tickets
online.
"Consumers can bypass airlines and traditional travel agencies
to get the best bargains for tickets," Juanita said.
According to KLM, the cost of ticket sales had dropped due to
online ticketing, and was expected to drop further as more
consumers bypass traditional distribution channels.
The report said that travel agents remained the most expensive
distribution channel, costing $23 per booking, compared with the
airline's online ticketing service, which costs $6 per booking.
Juanita said KLM had already implemented online ticketing in
several European countries, where the reaction from the local
travel industry had gone from resentment to a realization that
adapting the technology was necessary.
The Jakarta branch chairman of the Association of Indonesian
Tour and Travel Agencies (Asita), Meity Robot, agreed that a
change for Indonesian travel agencies was bound to come with the
advent of e-commerce.
"There is no other way but to take advantage of e-commerce
technology," she said during the seminar.
Websites like Yahoo.com, Expedia.com, Biztravel.com or
BananaTravel.com offer consumers almost the same range of
services as traditional travel agencies, including reservations
for hotels, car rentals and tours.
Several sites feature reservations with real-time access to
scheduling, pricing and availability of tickets.
These virtual travel agencies also bring the ability to track
down the lowest price of flight tickets available, based on
consumers' own preferences.
Yesterday's seminar was aimed at gearing up travel agents to
anticipate changes in the industry, such as e-commerce
competition, Juanita, who managed the event said.
She said it was the first time this type of seminar had been
conducted in Indonesia, which mixed training with entertainment.
"This seminar doesn't provide participants with KLM product
knowledge, but with training to improve their self-motivation
skills," she said.(03)