Japan Airlines and Amadeus have signed an extended
distribution and IT agreement in which Amadeus will be the carrier's
recommended distribution partner in the Japanese market. The agreement will
bring all f JAL's content—including the full range of international fares,
preferred fares and negotiated fares—to the Amadeus Travel Platform. "With
this new agreement, we're aiming to differentiate our travel offers based on
value rather than just price," JAL executive officer of international
passenger sales Yoriyuki Kashiwagi said. "We believe that Amadeus provides
the best technology for agents to book and retail Japan Airlines' travel
offers."
Earlier this year, JAL and Travelport had announced plans to
form a joint venture that combined Travelport Japan K.K. and JAL subsidiary
Axess International Network, its local market distribution system, into a
single global distribution system. In early September, however, Travelport
announced the JV would not move forward, and on Wednesday, JAL said it plans to
terminate the Axess system on March 31, 2021.
JAL already uses Amadeus' Altea Suite for its passenger
service system, which means agents connected to Amadeus will "enjoy
real-time, accurate and efficient information sharing with complete visibility
of the airline's inventory," according to Amadeus.