Contemplating what could be their first major collaboration in seven years, the Association of Corporate Travel Executives and the National Business Travel Association today announced that they will cooperate on issues "critical to the travel industry and the global economy," such as data privacy. "ACTE and NBTA also agreed to share calendar dates to avoid overlapping events," the pair announced.
Following an hour-long meeting last week that included NBTA president and CEO Carol Devine and ACTE president Garth Jopling, the organizations concluded that, "circumstances occasionally call for the industry to offer a unified front," according to a prepared statement by Jopling.
ACTE and NBTA in 1996 formed a joint taskforce to standardize the electronic provision of hotel folio data
(BTN, Oct. 14, 1996). While falling short of expectations, the initiative spurred some vendors to make incremental gains that continue to this day
(BTN, Feb. 9). Founded in 1988, ACTE claims 2,500 members in 37 countries. Thirty-five year-old NBTA said it represents more than 2,400 corporate travel managers and travel service providers. In 1996, ACTE claimed 1,300 members and NBTA said it had 1,800.