Business Travel News

Top Stories

DOT Tentatively Denies Delta, Virgin Blue Transpacific Venture

The U.S. Department of Transportation on Wednesday tentatively denied an antitrust-immune joint venture proposed in July 2009 between Delta Air Lines and the Australia-based Virgin Blue Group, citing...

Advito: 2011 Airfares, Hotel Rates To Rise Worldwide

In an updated forecast released Wednesday, BCD Travel's Advito consulting unit said airfares next year will grow by low-to-mid single-digit percentages in all regions, while overall worldwide average...

U.S. Launches New Visa-Waiver Entry Fee

U.S. Customs and Border Protection on Wednesday began collecting $14 from travelers to complete the requisite Electronic System for Travel Authorization prior to entering the entering the United States...

Microsoft Assessing Impact Of Telepresence On Product Development

Microsoft has started measuring the effectiveness of its telepresence suites in terms of how quickly they are helping users bring new products to market, the company's EMEA travel manager, Julia Heesterman,...

Top Story bullets

AVIATION

DOT Tentatively Denies Delta, Virgin Blue Transpacific Venture

The U.S. Department of Transportation on Wednesday tentatively denied an antitrust-immune joint venture...

U.S. Launches New Visa-Waiver Entry Fee

U.S. Customs and Border Protection on Wednesday began collecting $14 from travelers to complete the...

Delta Plans Transpacific 747 Upgrades

Delta Air Lines next year will begin equipping its 16-plane Boeing 747 fleet with full flat-bed seats...

Merging Airlines Choose More Continental, United Executives For Management Team

Airlines Kick In More Money To Fund Atlanta Airport Terminal

JAL Plan Would Dump 49 Routes, Consider Low-Cost Conversion

More Aviation »

EUROBTN

Nearly All German Corporates Sign Controversial Lufthansa Contracts

Around 95 percent of Lufthansa's corporate clients in Germany have signed the controversial contracts...

Turbulence For Czech, Hungarian Flag Carriers

Problems emerged for two Eastern European flag carriers last week, with Hungary's national airline accepting...

Air France Reportedly Considering Launch Of Low-Cost Carrier

Air France refused to comment Friday on this week's report that it is considering launching a low-cost...

German Departure Tax To Put Bigger Bite On Long-Haul Flights

Amadeus, SNCF Advance European Rail Distribution

July Hotel Rates Soar In London, Followed By Berlin and Vienna

More EuroBTN »

GROUND TRANSPORTATION

Avis Budget Raises Offer For Dollar Thrifty

Avis Budget Group on Thursday upped the cash portion of its offer to acquire Dollar Thrifty Automotive...

Sixt's Sixth-Month Results Show Successful U-Turn

Germany's largest car rental provider, Sixt, cited growth in other European markets and a reduced fleet...

Dav El, Hertz Cross-Selling, But Still Integrating

Seven months after Dav El Chauffeured Transportation Network announced a sales, marketing and distribution...

Car-Sharing Use, Investment On The Rise

Carey Launches Lower-Priced Chauffeured Subsidiary

Concur Joins Others In Offering Amtrak Bookings

More Ground Transportation »

HOTELS

IHG Fills New Positions To Strengthen Brand Development

InterContinental Hotels Group on Friday added positions to its sales and marketing team to oversee the design...

GSA Adjusts Per Diem Hotel Rates

The U.S. Government Services Administration this week upped its standard per diem reimbursement rate but lowered...

Starwood Rolls Out Loyalty Rewards App

Starwood Hotels & Resorts on Wednesday launched its first mobile application for BlackBerry smartphones:...

Starwood Bulking Up Asia/Pacific Hotel Portfolio

PwC Sees Dwindling New Supply Driving Hotel Room Rate Hikes Next Year

IHG Urging Large-Volume Buyers To Adopt Dynamic Hotel Pricing

More Lodging »

LOCATION

Las Vegas Sees Its Long Hard-Luck Streak Beginning To Make A Turnaround

One year after an unprecedented and protracted meltdown in their meetings business, Las Vegas hoteliers...

Delta Unveils JFK Terminal Development Plans

Delta Air Lines on Wednesday unveiled plans for the redevelopment and expansion of Terminal 4 at John...

Study Cites U.S. Cities Targeting Travelers For Taxes

Business travelers face the highest taxes in Chicago, New York and Boston, but Portland, Ore., ranks...

U.S. Next Month To Collect Fees From Visitors To Fund Tourism Bureau

JetBlue Targets Boston For Corporate Expansion

State Department To Hike Passport, Visa Fees

More Location »

MEETINGS MANAGEMENT

Small Meetings Data Elusive, But Capturing It Is Lucrative

Getting a handle on small meetings remains a challenge even for mature travel programs, though companies...

New Model Would Assess Strategic Mtgs. Maturity

A new model to measure and analyze corporate strategic meetings management program development and implementation...

Survey: Stabilizing Meetings Market Offers Negotiating, Availability Challenges

Negotiating meetings contracts and finding available meeting space have increased slightly in difficulty...

Demand Picking Up Planners' Perceptions

Face To Face: StarCite CEO Gregory Dukat

Cisco, Sabre Developing Remote Conferencing Distribution Platform

More Meetings Management »

PAYMENT SYSTEMS

Amex Again Tops J.D. Power Credit Card Customer Satisfaction Study

American Express ranked highest among card issuers in customer satisfaction, as overall satisfaction...

Amex Providing Chinese Currency Traveler's Checks

American Express this week launched traveler's checks in the Chinese yuan, which it calls the world's first...

U.S. Bank To Issue Corporate Cards In Europe

U.S. Bank next year will begin issuing corporate T&E cards in Europe for companies that have operations...

BMO To Feed Card Data Into IBM Expense Tool

CyberShift Unveils Expense-Processing Outsourcing Service

Concur To Get Marriott Folio Data, Add Mobile Apps

More Payment Systems »

PEOPLE

BTN Names Google's Tangney European Travel Manager Of The Year

Business Travel News on Monday evening named Google's Dublin-based global travel category manager...

Face To Face: Carlson President And CEO Hubert Joly

Carlson president and CEO Hubert Joly, alongside Thorsten Kirschke, Carlson Hotels' executive vice president...

Siemens Gets Car And Airline Vendors To Do Its Bidding

Siemens, the multinational conglomerate, made real strides in car rental and airline purchasing in the...

Face To Face: ARC President And CEO David R.B. Collins

Former BTN Travel Manager Of The Year Among New NBTA Board Members

BTN Names J&J's Chevalier Travel Manager Of The Year

More People »

PERSPECTIVES

Op-Ed: Corporate Travelers Face Double-Edged Sword

Today's business travelers are being tested on two fronts. On the corporate side, they are facing cost-cutting...

BTN Blueprint: How Travel Managers Can Ensure They Are Getting Negotiated Or Lowest Air And Hotel Rates

In today's environment, the reservation and booking process has become highly transparent to most travelers....

Letter To The Editor: Seeking Balance Regarding Capital Ideas

Michael Baker's businesstravelnews.com article "U.S. Hotels Making Fewer Capital Improvements" on June...

Editorial: Becoming The Change That You Want To See In The World

Op-Ed: Policies Prompt Greater Hotel Program Control

Op-Ed: Consortium Buying Can Benefit Both Sides

More Perspectives »

TECHNOLOGY

TRX Exec Austin Bets On Tech Offerings

Kevin Austin, TRX's executive vice president of TravelTrax, recently became the largest single stockholder...

KDS Adds ROI, Secure Flight, Combinable Fare Functionality

Online booking and expense management tool provider KDS is introducing several new features, including...

Google: DOJ Requests More ITA Deal Information

The U.S. Department of Justice has requested more information from Internet search giant Google about...

FlightStats Builds Mobile Messaging System

Rearden To Enable Southwest Bookings

CWT To Replace Horizon Booking Tool With Rearden Platform

More Technology »

TRAVEL MANAGEMENT

Advito: 2011 Airfares, Hotel Rates To Rise Worldwide

In an updated forecast released Wednesday, BCD Travel's Advito consulting unit said airfares next year...

Microsoft Assessing Impact Of Telepresence On Product Development

Microsoft has started measuring the effectiveness of its telepresence suites in terms of how quickly...

ACLU Sues DHS Over Traveler Laptop Seizures

The American Civil Liberties Union on Tuesday filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Homeland...

Former Pfizer Travel Exec Dunphy Joins Partnership Travel Consulting

AirPlus Survey: Buyers Predict Further 2010 Travel Growth

ISOS, ACTE: Many Asia/Pacific Companies Should Review Safety Policy

More Travel Management »