travel technology

May 5, 2022

Rethinking the Role of Online Booking Tools in Corporate Travel

Tweet Way back in the early 2000s I was asked to address a session at Oracle Corporation shortly after they had acquired e-Travel. I was introduced as the “grandfather” of self-booking tools. This title reflected my early adoption of this tech at Sun Microsystems and the fact that I authored the first analysis of OBTs back in the late 1990s. […]
March 17, 2021

The Philip Wolf I Knew

Tweet Philip’s passing yesterday was a shock for all who knew him, but for me it was extremely personal. My journey with Philip Wolf goes back nearly 30 years and I can state emphatically that Philip fundamentally had a positive impact on my life in countless ways and has had a lasting dramatic impact on the global travel industry.     […]
June 1, 2020

Travel Tech Investment Opportunities in a Post Covid-19 World

Tweet With the industry at a near standstill due to the global pandemic, we often forget that over the last decade the travel industry experienced significant investment from Angels, Venture Capitalists and Private Equity, creating new travel/transportation unicorns (e.g. Uber, Lyft, Airbnb, TripActions, Travel Perk and Oyo to name a few).  While post Covid-19 investors need to exercise caution, there […]
May 13, 2020

The Role of NDC in a Post Covid-19 World

Tweet The recent announcement that beginning June 1st Sabre agents will no longer be able to book Lufthansa flights on the Sabre GDS may be a signal of more changes to come in travel distribution as the industry slowly recovers from the global pandemic. Though the Sabre/Farelogix deal was cancelled, the Sabre/DOJ trial clearly uncovered the airlines continued commitment to […]
August 10, 2018

The Personalization Hype vs Reality

Tweet For the global travel industry, the subject of personalization has never been hotter. The number of articles, conference themes and startups pitches emphasizing personalization has reached the extreme hype phase of the cycle. In reality, the theme of personalization has been around for decades. For the travel industry, personalization has its own set of barriers especially for the infrequent […]
July 31, 2018

The Travel Industry Hype Cycle

Tweet AI will take my job. VR will eliminate the need for travel. AR will enable a new mixed reality travel experience. Travelers demand and expect personalization. Blockchain will put the OTAs and GDS out of business. Voice is the new computer interface. We are in a constant state of hype around emerging technologies and their impact on the travel […]