As BTOnline reports, last week Jetblue signed an agreement with Amadeus, which gives it representation in all of the major Global Distribution Systems(GDS), including Sabre, Worldspan, and Galileo. Jetblue had left the GDS world and been somewhat successful with 100% direct booking.
But, as Jetblue has concluded, opening itself up to GDS bookings has gotten it into the business travel world in a way it could not before. CEO David Neeleman reports that over 66 percent of the bookings are new business to the carrier, and a big chunk of the bookings are coming midweek, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday – a prime travel time for business travelers…something most legacy carriers exploit. Thus, even though fares purchased through GDS are about $35 higher per segment than Jetblue.com, it appears to be paying off.
Southwest, which has also avoided GDS distribution, participates in Sabre to a very small degree, mostly for the benefit of physical travel agencies, and despite that, has remained successful.
David Neeleman is still optimistic about growth for Jetblue though. In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, he reviewed Jetblue’s position. Jetblue is restructuring itself to the realities of the new market. It is experimenting with listing itself in Sabre-based travel site Travelocity, and other revenue streams.