The demise of GDS (Global Distribution System) platforms is greatly exaggerated, GDS is a legacy system that’s been around for decades, but only thinking of GDS in terms of inventory is not giving it full credit for its other benefits.

GDS: A Case Study in Reinvention

GDS may predate the World Wide Web, but what was once old is now new again. Use of the GDS is currently on the upswing as it holds an enormous and ever-growing amount of data that hotels can use to maintain and improve their
competitiveness.

Developing internal analytics and data services will remove some of the reliance on GDS, but not completely. GDS is also changing to adapt to the times—and hotels would be wise to keep up.

The Go-To for Travel Agents and Corporate Travel Managers

The surge of online travel agencies (OTAs) in the past decade reduced GDS usage, but GDS is still favored by large travel agencies and corporate travel managers (CTMs). The travel agent business is experiencing a healthy comeback, predominantly by millennials and high-end travelers who want expert advice and customized travel experiences.

Some travelers are also frustrated with the online booking process—especially for complex itineraries—and are seeking out the expert help of travel agent professionals. Those agents will largely turn to GDS for their flight and hotel bookings.

The numbers bear this out. Every day, around 600,000 travel agents look at GDS. Three of the biggest GDS platform companies—Amadeus, Sabre, and Travelport - have all seen continued growth in recent years.

“There is still no other platform that can compete on both breadth of offerings as well as include every major aspect of a trip,” says Ana Cachon Sanchez, GDS sales manager at Madrid-based NH Hotel Group, an international collection of hotel properties.

“You have the opportunity to give an extra boost to your hotel and increase visibility to properties, airlines, and car rentals because the same platform is being used for all the different services,” says Sanchez. “GDS platforms update information in real time and hotels can update rates or descriptions as well so that information will be immediately visible to travel agents.”

“The biggest market for GDS-listed hotels is still travel agents on behalf of corporate accounts but GDS are living a transformation from their original use by travel agents only, to corporate and leisure online travelers,” says Maite Aguilar, vice president of distribution sales, also at NH Hotel Group.

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