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United matches American’s segment fees: others to follow?
United matched American’s $3.50 segment fees for agency bookings in a domino effect that already has implications for what some are warning could lead to “chaos” in the industry.
The American Society of Travel Agents made that warning after American’s move to impose the $3.50 per segment on segments booked on GDS’s not favored by the airline.
“This policy of shifting still more costs off on American’s financial statements onto the backs of travel agents and their customer’s is unconscionable,” said Kathryn W. Sudeikis, president and CEO of ASTA.
She said what made it worse was that American did not coordinate with other preferred GDS’s. ”So travel agents are still in the dark about the financial terms that each option provides,” she said.
She added the move threatened “chaos.”
She said: “American’s announcement tells every travel agency in America: if you want to sell us, run your business the way we tell you or you’ll be forced to pay us for the privilege of booking our services.”
American said the starting date of the move would be September 1.
David Cush, American’s vice president of global sales, said the GDS was an efficient channel but was not competitive cost-wise.
In common with American, United said it will not levy the $3.50 fee on agencies who book through qualified booking channels.
United’s list of qualified channels is different from American’s.
United promised further details of its plan in the next few weeks.
Report by David Wilkening
David
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