May 22, 2012 - 11:55 AM ET
Lanyon signed deals with serviced apartment providers CityBase in the United Kingdom and SheVana in Denmark to include content within Lanyon's engagements and projects tool. The tool processes requests for proposals and room contracts and manages data around long-term stays, a task traditionally handled by "highly manual processes or single-provider solutions," according to Lanyon chief commercial officer Mike Boult. Citybase has a portfolio of about 21,000 apartments across 25 countries, while SheVana represents about 10,000 apartments across Europe, Asia and the Middle East.
May 10, 2012 - 10:25 AM ET
GDS industry bookings in April kept up a 4.6 percent year-over-year rate of increase enjoyed during the first quarter, but April growth in the Americas was more sluggish at under 1 percent, according to Travelport executives. The officials were speaking with analysts about Travelport's March quarter results, including a 3.5 percent increase in Americas segments booked. Europe fell 1.9 percent and the company's smaller Middle East-Africa and Asia-Pacific regions grew by 5.7 percent and 3.9 percent, respectively. Overall Travelport segments increased 2.4 percent to 98 million in the quarter. Travelport narrowed its net loss in the March quarter to $11 million from $23 million a year earlier on 4 percent higher revenues of $550 million.
May 09, 2012 - 09:40 AM ET
Amadeus IT Holding for the quarter ending March 31 reported a 6.1 percent increase in combined air and non-air bookings versus the
year-earlier period. The company also claimed a 38.2 percent global share of
travel agency air bookings, up 0.9 percentage points from a year earlier. The
company described the increase as "significant" and cited "both
organic growth in various markets and positive region mix." Amadeus also
reported an 8 percent increase in its distribution business revenues and a 10.4
percent jump in IT solutions revenues. The company's quarterly earnings before
interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization improved 5.4 percent from a
year earlier to €307.2 million. Overall, adjusted profit jumped 22.1 percent to
€167.9 million.
May 07, 2012 - 10:35 AM ET
Virgin America reported a full-year 2011 net loss of $100.4 million, larger than its $68.7 million loss in 2010. The privately held carrier cited "high fuel costs and the costs of growth." Full-year revenues jumped by 43 percent, pushing Virgin America above the $1 billion threshold to meet the U.S. Department of Transportation's definition of "major" carrier. However, Virgin America likely won't be characterized as such until next year, as DOT "recalculates air carrier groupings in the fall based on operating revenue numbers for the four quarters ending in June," according to a DOT spokesman. "If a carrier reports more than $1 billion in operating revenue and the numbers demonstrate sustainability over a period of time, it will be classified as a Group III major carrier, beginning January 2013." DOT requires major carriers to report "monthly on-time performance, baggage handling and other operational statistics," though Virgin America says it already does so voluntarily.
May 07, 2012 - 10:30 AM ET
Avis Budget reported a $23 million first-quarter net loss, compared with a $7 million profit for the first three months of 2011, due to "debt extinguishment costs" and charges related to the
acquisition of Avis Europe, according to the company. Avis Budget reported that North American rental car revenues grew 4 percent year over year. Quarterly commercial volume grew 3 percent year over year, though pricing declined by 2 percent.
May 07, 2012 - 08:10 AM ET
Airfare price tracking and refund provider Yapta announced a "formal pilot program" of its enterprise solution, designed to deliver savings when "corporate airfares drop in price." In development for the last several months, the system is "designed specifically to engage with any back-end corporate travel environment," according to the company. Called FareIQ, it "was built on more than five years of knowledge and expertise tracking airfares for consumers and successfully identifying millions in potential savings," according to Yapta president and CEO Ken Myer. Most domestic U.S. airlines offer refunds in cases where prices drop by a certain amount, which varies by carrier. Prior to the new pilot, a six-month test of the "patent-pending technology ... revealed $2.8 million in savings on a sample of 100,000 business itineraries," according to Yapta. Its pilot with "several large TMCs and their clients" includes CorpTrav Management Group near Chicago. Yapta is part-owned by Concur.
May 04, 2012 - 10:10 AM ET
Air France-KLM reported a €368 million first-quarter net loss, roughly the same as the
€367 million loss reported for the same period last year. The airline group's nearly 6 percent increase in passenger unit
revenue could not offset a 9 percent increase in operating costs, driven by a
fuel bill that grew by €255 million year over year.