Sabre: Agency Incentives Going DownSabre Holdings this month during its first-quarter earnings call said that, in light of new full-content deals with airlines, agency incentives are moving downward. "We've been talking about incentive moderation for a couple of years," said executive vice president and Sabre Travel Network group president Tom Klein, who added that Sabre has yet to roll out "a specific program for agents around the new construct of GDS contracts." One analyst during the call noted that GDS rival Cendant said agency incentives are rising, to which Sabre chairman and CEO Sam Gilliland replied, "I am surprised to hear Galileo say their incentives are going north." Klein said that Sabre has signed a "large portion of the world's airlines," representing more than 275 carriers, including signings with such major U.S. carriers as AirTran, Delta, Northwest, United and US Airways. Still mum on specifics of the full-content arrangements, Sabre's Klein said they are trying to provide a "balanced distribution model that works for everyone," including airlines, agencies and corporate customers. While the GDS has yet to sign deals with Continental or American—both of which have railed against Sabre's content-sharing pact with Amadeus—Gilliland said, "We don't view any of the carriers as dragging their feet," adding that it will be months before the non-signed carriers' current contracts expire. Confident that airline deals will come to fruition, Gilliland said of the Amadeus deal, "I would actually be surprised if the terms within that agreement were ever triggered."
Starwood Taps San Francisco For First Le MeridienStarwood Hotels & Resorts this month announced that San Francisco would be the site for its first new Le Meridien hotel, a brand it acquired in November
(BTNonline, Nov. 28). The acquisition of the Le Meridien brand gives Starwood further presence—especially internationally, where almost 70 percent of the properties are—and Starwood said it would aggressively expand on the brand. "Le Meridien is a perfect complement to the Starwood portfolio, with its international footprint and unique European guest culture," said Javier Benito, Starwood's executive vice president and chief marketing officer. "Le Meridien represents a great growth opportunity alongside the W and Westin brands, extends the number of destination choices of travel to Starwood loyalists across the world, and further secures Starwood's position as one of the leading international consumer lifestyle hotels." Starwood will concentrate on expanding the brand over the next five years, specifically in the United States, Latin America and Asia/Pacific. The San Francisco site was chosen because of its mix of business, culture and retail. Merritt Hospitality, a division of HEI Hospitality, will manage the hotel.
MasterCard Readies Benchmarking ToolMasterCard International will have a diagnostic tool by year-end for corporate customers looking for ways to optimize their travel program, according to the card provider. Working with the Boston-based Aberdeen Group, MasterCard has already introduced its Purchase Optimizer, an online, interactive program that helps companies evaluate their own purchasing card programs by benchmarking against similar companies. That ability will extend to travel programs in the third or fourth quarter of this year. It's one of several innovations aimed toward corporate customers that are in the works at MasterCard, an executive told Business Travel News. The provider also is moving closer to its much-anticipated IPO, but the company said it is not yet able to comment on what effect that might have on its corporate card program.