United Teams Up For Software
<B> United Teams Up For Software</B>
Targeting the shortage of computer programmers, United Airlines and TCG Software Services last month formed SkyTech Solutions, a software development center in Calcutta, India.
United's first joint venture, SkyTech Solutions initially will employ 50 professionals to help the airline use technology to make travel simpler. As it broadens its offerings and markets, the company is expecting to employ more than 200 people, said Norman Corn, president of Secaucus, N.J.-based TCG. For the past two years, TCG has been working for United on its Fast Air and Fast Res products, as well as on crisis management and Y2K programming.
United owns 49 percent of the joint venture and TCG owns the remainder. TCG is a provider of offshore software development and maintenance to Fortune 500 companies, and is owned by The Chatterjee Group, a private investment and money management firm affiliated with billionaire George Soros.
Separately, United, in partnership with Speedwing and Singapore Airlines, sold their combined E-Ticket product to El Al Israel Airlines, which expects to roll it out this fall. Since developing E-Ticket for itself in 1995, United has sold it to 13 other airlines around the globe, teaming with Speedwing, British Airways' technology subsidiary, on six of those sales. The duo chose Singapore Airlines for its departure control application interface, which is needed to make the product work for El Al.
In addition to E-Ticket, United's information services unit sells 24 other applications to other carriers, with the focus on just five or six, according to Donna Fridrych, director of IS marketing. Internally, United has debated whether it should sell to competitors, she said, "but in technology today, you maintain a lead for such a very short period of time. Now, within 12 to 18 months, there is usually some vendor who can duplicate the technology," where once the lead lasted five to 10 years, she added.
Among the applications for sale is a technical document management system, which records information about a plane from the moment it's delivered, and aircraft scheduling models. The strategy of selling IS developments started in 1995, after the employee stock ownership began and Andy Studdert, since promoted, was named CIO.