ALGT Gives 757s a try - Aloha Hawaii
March 8, 2010
Allegiant to buy 757s for Hawaii flights | finance.yahoo.com
Allegiant Travel Services has bought six 757s for new service to Hawaii
The Future of the GDS as privately held companies
February 11, 2010
Travelport Defers U.K. IPO, Cancels Debt Tender Offer (Update1) | www.businessweek.com
Travelport cancelled its IPO and debt tender offer this week, citing "volatile equity market conditions". Travelport started the share sale on Feb. 1 with a marketing process to sell between 383 million and 528 million shares at a price of 210 pence to 290 pence apiece. The IPO would have been the biggest in the U.K. since 2007, giving the company a so-called enterprise value of 8.8 times earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization.
OTAs Prevail Against Anaheim: Court Calls Prior Ruling "Logical Fallacy"
February 3, 2010
Expedia, Priceline and Orbitz Rejoice at Hotel Tax Rollback | industry.bnet.com
The major Online Travel Agencies today notched a huge win in Anaheim, California where a judge threw out a $21,326,881.30 ruling against Expedia, Travelocity, Priceline, Orbitz and their related subsidiaries with a strongly worded rebuke to the Anaheim City Hearing Officer's earlier findings
The downward trend on air ticket sales continues for the agency channel
January 22, 2010
Air Ticket Sales for 2009 were down 17.29% | www.arccorp.com
Year over year air ticket sales through the travel agency channel (both online and offline) declined 17.29% in 2009. Total sales were $65.8b, with $29.9b from domestic fares and $25.6b from international fares (with the balance being taxes and fees). There are 15,928 agencies in the US and 188 airlines. The number of agencies declined 10% from 17,673 in 2008. This is due to continued consolidation and to some extent, the closure of the low end agencies that cannot survive in today's economy. The number of airlines grew from 173. Who knew? The number of transactions (aka tickets) only declined 5.48%. International sales as a percentage of total declined just slightly to 39%. The average price of an international ticket declined 16% to $700.47 and a domestic ticket declined 12% to an average of $298.93, which signals an increase in sales through the top 4 online sites.
All three key metrics in hospitality are down for 2009 - No surprises there
January 22, 2010
US hotel industry ends '09 with double-digit RevPAR drop | www.hotelnewsnow.com
The three top metrics in the hospitality industry are revenue per available room (RevPAR), occupancy and average daily room rate (ADR).Revenue per available room fell 16.7 percent to US$53.71 during 2009, according to year-end reports from Smith Travel Research.The industry’s occupancy fell 8.7 percent to 55.1 percent for the year and average daily rate dropped 8.8 percent to US$97.51. None of the top 25 markets showed any growth in these top 3 metrics.
Priceline's New TV Ad Brings Revenue Management 101 to the People
January 20, 2010
Priceline.com Focuses On Hotel Savings In New Advertising Campaign | finance.yahoo.com
Today, Priceline.com launched a new TV ad campaign featuring a new Shatner side-kick known as "Big Deal." Not only is the Big Deal big, but he also appears to have a deep understanding of hotel revenue management.
November 18, 2009
Honda Targets Return To Pre-Crisis Profitability | online.wsj.com
The 2010 year is shaping up to be a very interesting one for fleet purchasers. The Detroit Big 3 have all dramatically scaled back their fleet programs. Part of the void created by this has been filled by the Koreans.
November 12, 2009
Expedia and Choice Hotels International Sign New Long-Term Agreement | www.prnewswire.com
After a particularly ugly public battle, Expedia Inc and Choice Hotels International have hammered out a new deal
Texas Cities vs. PCLN, EXPE, OWW et al: A Draw at Best
November 3, 2009
Texas Cities Win $20M Verdict in Tax Case | dallas.bizjournals.com
Late last week, a jury in San Antonio delivered a verdict on a class-action suit against the major OTAs that was brought by around 170 cities in Texas. The verdict against Expedia, Orbitz.com, Travelocity and Priceline.com is for $20M plus court imposed penalties and interest.
Choice Hotels International and Expedia: We've Seen This Movie Before
October 19, 2009
Growing Tension Between Hoteliers, OTAs | www.hotelsmag.com
Choice Hotels International and Expedia are in a tiff resulting in Choice brands not displaying on Expedia and Hotels.com
February 7, 2012
SOPA and the wisdom of Yogi Berra
January 19, 2012
Larger wafers present a growth opportunity for LEDs
January 6, 2012
Smartphones threaten digital camera industry
December 1, 2011
Google music launches: The end of the end for the music industry
November 22, 2011