The March edition of The Pegasus View from Pegasus Solutions indicates a tipping point in booking confidence, especially in business travel.

Based on data drawn from billions of global distribution system (GDS) and alternative distribution system (ADS) transactions for the month, the report shows future bookings through the GDS are up five of the next six months, while bookings for Q1 2010 through both channels were higher than the same period for the last three years.

Of relative importance to hotels struggling with depressed rates, March 2010 average daily rate (ADR) jumped +1.68% over March 2009, representing the first year-over-year rate increase in quite some time. March bookings through both the GDS and ADS also exceeded March 2009 by +7.96%, March 2008 by +19.91%, and March 2007 by +27.18%.

"It's here. We and other experts have been forecasting, hoping for, a recovery, and now the numbers show it. Net revenue in the GDS is up for the third month in a row, five of the next six months are up in the same channel, and ADR in both channels actually rose for a change," said Mike Kistner, chief executive officer of Pegasus Solutions. 

"Now is the time for the hotels that weathered the storm to plan for the next: an upswing. Revenue management and yield management strategies will be more important than ever in translating the coming increase in travel to closing the ADR gap, thus raising prospects for increasing gross revenue."

Revenues through both channels in March 2010 came in +8.29% over 2009, +0.91% over 2008 and +10.97% over 2007, with the first quarter realizing a +5.42% increase above the first quarter of 2009. This and other data in The Pegasus View, as well as other industry reports, paints a positive outlook for 2010, according to Kistner.

"As corporations report earnings in line with or better than expectations, business travel overall should react accordingly," added Kistner. "This, combined with consumer confidence, will provide a good indication of the coming summer months, which rely heavily on the leisure market. We're keeping a watchful eye on the world's economies as they will determine the sustainability of this recovery."

Amadeus reports 23% more passengers in 2009

Meanwhile, Amadeus said that, in 2009, it processed 238 million passengers boarded from airlines using Altéa, 23% more than in the previous year, representing 11% of the world's air traffic.

Since January 2009, Amadeus says it has migrated 31 airlines to one or more Altéa CMS modules and contracted 30 further airlines.

"In this challenging operating environment we have seen airlines invest more than ever in technology that contributes to cost savings, customer benefits and revenue enhancements", said Julia Sattel, VP Airline IT, Amadeus.

Amadeus has also invested in complementary solutions to improve airport IT and provide more integrated airport services. Nice Côte d'Azur Airport, Air France, Amadeus and IER partnered to pilot a new mobile boarding pass based on Near Field Communication (NFC) technology.

Amadeus e-commerce also continues to be an area of expansion. In 2009 Amadeus launched Affinity Shopper, an extreme search solution for airlines websites. 

Through this solution consumers can explore and select their trip based on their desired holiday experience, allowing them to ask online open questions such as "where can I go, what can I do, for what I want to spend?" Amadeus e-commerce solutions generated approximately €10 billion of revenue for airlines during 2009.

The Pegasus View for March 2010 available online and by free subscription at www.pegs.com

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