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Chain Internet Reservations |
CHICAGO (Oct. 9, 2003) -- TravelCLICK today released results from the company's 2003 eTRAK report demonstrating that major hotel chains continue to receive the majority of their Internet reservations through their own brand sites. eTRAK analyzes the booking production of central reservation offices (CRO) for 28 major hotel chains. For the first six months of 2003, total Internet reservations showed a growth of 36 percent compared to the same period in 2002. eTRAK statistics indicate that voice bookings received at reservation offices continue to decline, now representing less than 39% of total reservations processed by CROs. GDS distribution continues to dominate Internet third party distribution totals. GDS reservations represent 35.6% of all CRO reservations, compared to the 8.5% of CRO reservations produced by third party Internet sites. Results from this study can differ with overall hospitality industry performance on the Internet and GDS because eTRAK reflects only the performance of these 28 brands, and only reflect reservations received through a CRO. "Compared to last year, for the first six months
of 2003 there has been a drop of 11.2% in phone calls to CROs. Because
such a large segment of the population checks the Internet before making
a phone reservation, more of these calls are booking calls. That is why
actual phone reservations only declined 4.6%," said Bruce W. Mainzer, senior
vice president of marketing for TravelCLICK. "The entire Internet channel
contribution is showing healthy growth, but the GDS still remains the dominant
source of electronic reservations for the major chains."
For the first six months of 2003, the top ten third-party Web sites for hotel bookings to brand CROs were, in order: Priceline, Expedia, Travelocity, Orbitz, Hotwire, TravelNow, USA Hotelguide, Lodging.com, WorldRes, and Southwest. Some well- known third party Web distributors, such as Hotels.com, did not place in the top ten on this list because these sites usually obtain rates and inventory directly from individual properties rather than a brand or chain CRO. The eTRAK report covers all central reservation office booking results including GDS, voice, and Internet bookings. The report allows subscribers to compare their own performance versus their direct competitors and the overall industry. The unique information contained in eTRAK is intended to help hotel companies decide e-commerce priorities such as where to invest Internet advertising dollars, and which sites create the best returns. For more information about TravelCLICK's eTRAK report, contact Rebecca Bodenhamer at [email protected]. About TravelCLICK
Established in 1996 and headquartered in the Chicago area, TravelCLICK operates in more than 140 countries around the world. The company has over 6,000 clients, including national and international companies such as Accor, Air France, Avis, Best Western International, British Airways, Carlson Hotels Worldwide, Choice Hotels, Fairmont Hotels & Resorts, Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts, Grupo Posadas, Hilton Hotels Corporation, Hyatt Hotels & Resorts, Kempinski Hotels & Resorts, Leading Hotels of the World, Loews Hotels, Lufthansa, Marriott International, The Peninsula Group, The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, SAS, The Savoy Group, Shangri-La Hotels, Sol Melia, Starwood Hotels & Resorts, Thistle Hotels, USAirways, Virgin Atlantic and Wyndham Hotels & Resorts. |
TravelCLICK Kristina Paider 847.585.5238 [email protected] www.travelclick.net Stephanie Seacord
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