| Abstract: | ABSTRACT The travel industry has begun to leverage the Internet by mirroring the electronic ticketing systems used by the airlines enabling hotels and tourism institutions in general to develop IT systems similar to American Airlines' Sabre system. These systems initially allowed travel agents to search for flights electronically. Now the customer is empowered to follow the lines of disintermediation and bypass the travel agent entirely. Thus, the travel industry is in a similar phase that manufacturing companies are dealing with, namely more transparent supply chains and flatter organizational structures-a common theme found in conducting e-commerce. Several models are suggested from industry to leverage connections that sell directly to the customer or buy directly from the manufacturer, although they all present potential risks, especially since this direct contact and transparency makes additional customer-partner contact easier and more likely to occur outside the direct control of the companies involved. The most compelling example of this situation is in the travel industry. In essence, the hospitality industries in general (hotels, airlines, car rental companies, and other travel services) are providing information and reservation systems directly to end consumers, entirely bypassing the traditional intermediary of travel agencies. |
