Global Distribution Systems Retool for the Next Digital Revolution
Photo Credit: Amadeus' Decius Valmorbida, right, on stage at the Skift Tech Forum 2018 in Santa Clara, Calif. Skift Travel Technology Editor Sean O'Neill interviewed him. Skift
Skift Take
The global distribution systems are each pushing forward in their own unique way. By investing like technology companies in flexible distribution and payment technologies, they hope to provide a better value proposition to travel partners that are keen to cut out the middleman. Decades of bad blood between the two, however, still linger over the conversation.
Depending on who you ask, the global distribution systems that power the worldwide travel industry are either outdated dinosaurs or powerful technology companies that will continue to be relevant far into the future.
The reality, though, is that it all depends on where they go from here.
Amadeus, Sabre, and Travelport have each taken different paths in recent years, but one thing is for sure: Each player is iterating to ensure they remain firmly entrenched in the travel marketplace.
Executives from each company separately spoke to Skift Travel Tech Editor Sean O'Neill at the Skift Tech Forum in Santa Clara, California on Tuesday about the future of the sector and the tensions between the global distribution systems and their longtime partners. Here are the most important takeaways from interviews with leaders from each company.
In an always-on, mobile-first world, travel companies need near-instantaneous digital tools to help market and sell their products.
"They're rea
