E-ticketing Hits Agencies

[george]

TRAVEL TRENDS: E-ticketing hits agencies

More travellers book via Net, call centres

BANGKOK: Air ticketing agencies are hurting as more buyers switch to electronic ticketing, a move which is reducing them to little more than airline franchises, said International Air Ticket Agency Association president Takerng Swasdipan.

Takerng said many airlines had begun to employ e-ticketing to sell direct to passengers via channels such as the Internet, making it tough for ticket agents to do business.

"We can't do anything about it. We have to just accept it because it is a trend that was bound to come sooner or later," Takerng said.

E-ticketing allows passengers to book seats via the Internet or through the airlines' call-centres and pay by credit card.

Airlines do not issue tickets and passengers need only to give their name or code at the airport counter when they check in.

To survive, ticketing agencies need to group themselves and adjust their roles as airline franchises by creating new service packages and not depend solely on ticket sales.

"If we enter the franchise system, agents will need to locate hotel rooms or travel packages and combine them with tickets to boost profit margins," Takerng said.

However, ticket agents have time to adjust as e-ticketing is still new to Thailand, he added.

Few airlines are efficient enough to fully employ the electronic system.

Moreover, there are obstacles on its use on some routes that require switching airlines. If one of two or more airlines that are involved do not use or have e-ticketing, many problems could arise.

He said ticketing agents also faced problems with airlines that endorse a policy of maximising prices. In such cases, passengers are forced to pay a premium if they want to ensure seats.

Passengers seeking cheap tickets must be prepared to wait until the airlines decide that it is time to dump their remaining seats at a lower rate.

"Such policies makes it hard for agents to manage their package prices and tourists have to pay expensive rates to ensure bookings," he said.

Manes Pipathananunth, president of the Thai Travel Agents Association, conceded that ticketing agencies would be edged out when every airline started to use e-ticketing. "E-ticketing has positive points as airlines can save costs in issuing tickets and not have to deal with lost tickets. The negative side is most of passengers may be concerned that bookings have been made accurately, because no receipt is issued when a bookings is made," he said.

In addition, passengers who use e-ticketing will face problems when applying for visas as many embassies require to see air tickets before issuing visas.

Thai Airways International vice president for western sales and distribution Chaiwat Chanapai said the carrier had tried to use e-ticketing as much as possible because it saves on costs and boosts revenues.

"We plan to use e-ticketing for all domestic flights by November," he said, adding that for international flights, e-ticketing would commence soon for destinations such as Japan, the United States and Germany.

--The nation 2004-03-05