Hogg Robinson Group selected Sabre's TripCase mobile itinerary solution, and is planning tests followed by a full rollout within the next three months.
TripCase is available for iPhone, Blackberry, Android and Windows Mobile devices, and most mobile web browsers. The free application allows users to organize trip information from multiple sources, get flight status and other en-route details, and share trip plans and photos. For corporations, TripCase also offers traveler messaging capabilities.
"We're in the process of identifying pilot clients today," said HRG director of technology product development Paul Saggar. "We have some names on the table. We're talking about large corporates in the multinational space across the globe. We would pick customers we're servicing across global distribution systems. We have identified one in South America, one in Europe and one in Asia-Pacific, so far. These are customers that are looking to us to provide some sort of mobile solution. We would then gauge feedback, and then within the next two to three months go for a full-blown launch."
Like other itinerary apps, TripCase lets users forward emailed confirmations from a variety of sources to a central address and then parses the details and adds them to the itinerary. But a more seamless connection in the managed travel environment is directly to the GDS, which allows for automatic itinerary creation and updates.
Already available for bookings made in Sabre, this functionality is on the drawing board for other GDSs, as well, said TripCase director of business development Michael O'Connell. Multi-GDS connectivity should be available within the next three quarters, meaning more than 90 percent of bookings would be synchronized automatically, O'Connell said.
"We as a TMC also will want to provide synchronization with non-GDS inventory," said Saggar. "We will work with TripCase to parse itineraries using an XML interface, so the source GDS is irrelevant.
He said part of the reason HRG chose TripCase was that "they're owned by a well-established GDS, so we're confident our customers will feel comfortable that we have picked a player that has the backing of a huge organization and will bring to the table the knowledge they have gained. They're not new to the game."
TripCase's rivals include TripIt, which is preferred by BCD Travel, and WorldMate, which American Express Business Travel and Carlson Wagonlit Travel choseas a preferred provider. Amex and CWT also use conTgo for SMS (text) messaging.
HRG uses a risk management firm called red24 for SMS messaging, and Saggar said he plans to explore sending to clients security-related messaging through TripCase, as well. "There are a couple other mobile-related development companies we're working with on our own application suite," said Saggar. He noted that while HRG might have its preferred solutions, the company would support anything a client wants to use.
O'Connell said TripCase's "coverage is global," although at the moment the app is available only in English. Traveler messaging can be in other languages if a client so desires, he said.
Social Issues?
Acknowledging the concern among some industry players about corporate employees sharing trip details, Saggar said, "The functionality that allows you to share trips may be something corporations will want to look at and decide how they want to use that." O'Connell noted that users can opt out of using that function.
"Mobile applications and social media are two very active areas of discussion and interest and consternation," said HRG North America executive vice president for global and strategic markets Tom Lacny in a May interview. "They are both interesting developments because they are new and they are areas in which individuals have a an ability to enable themselves so that the greater context becomes, if there is this enabling capability, how do I manage it? How do I control it? How do I protect confidences in it?
"Also, it is not a world where everything is the same," he noted. "You look at telecom carriers, and both the hardware and software of what's available where, and there are no general rules apply that apply everywhere. So you end up saying, 'The U.S. is different than in Canada, and U.K. different than than the U.S. and Canada, and Germany is different than the U.K., and France is different.' You end up a lot of different initiatives going. Some clients ask for help embracing it and others are asking to help protect against it. It is still early."