Southwest, which has long been a holdout on working with global distribution systems(GDS), and only maintained the most limited participation in them…today announced a 10-year content distribution agreement with Galileo.
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Kevin Krone, Southwest’s VP of Sales, Marketing, and Distribution, commented that the GDS environment has evolved to the point where it has become cost effective for them to list in it…this as Southwest is searching for new revenue opportunities. With full access to Southwest fares and inventory through Galileo, travel agencies, online consolidators, and business travel departments will be able to make Southwest reservations. Details on the cost to agents for Southwest content will be made available shortly. They also may be making arrangements with Apollo as well.
For the average consumer, this may mean little. We advise consumers to avoid booking through online consolidators like Travelocity for their tickets because of a low level of customer service…especially compared to talking to a Southwest agent.
