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As part of the deal, Etihad, one of the world’s fastest growing airlines, will use all three components of the Amadeus Altéa CMS comprising Altéa Reservation - including e-ticketing, Altéa Inventory and Altéa Departure Control System. The full suite, based on a next generation “community” IT platform, aims to provide Etihad with complete control over its distribution channels, inventory and seat planning, and the airport checkin process. This will enable the airline to maximise yield on every seat as well as identify the value of its guests at all stages of the travelling process, ensuring that service is targeted accordingly.

 

Securing competitive advantage is a top priority, which is why Etihad has chosen Altéa CMS, a flexible platform that will address its evolving and increasingly complex business requirements.

 

Ian Ferguson-Brown, head of communications, Etihad Airways, said, “As a growing, new airline in a highly competitive market, differentiation is key and getting the right technology in place is an important part of this strategy. Altéa CMS’ customer-centric features are an excellent fit to our guest recognition program. By using a technology platform that is based around the needs of our guests, we are able to deliver the targeted, seamless service that they expect. Further, Altéa underpins our strategy for timely deployment of e-ticketing, to align us with the global industry and offer what is today a key point of differentiation in the Middle East region.”

 

He continued, “The commercial benefits of joining a community platform for us are clear. We are able to take advantage of proven IT systems that are flexible and agile and we also benefit from ongoing product developments at lower than average costs.”

 

Amadeus’ vice president, airline business group, Frédéric Spagnou, said, “Amadeus Altéa CMS gives Etihad the confidence that their customer management system is robust enough to support their ambitious commercial strategy. As a growing airline, the ability to scale rapidly and embrace new services as they develop is a critical factor of success. The Altéa community platform ensures Etihad remains compliant with evolving industry standards, thereby allowing the airline to focus on delivering new initiatives and developing partnerships with other airlines.”

 

Complete implementation of the Altéa suite is planned by the end of this year. Etihad went live with e-ticketing on its own flights in June 2006.

 

To date, 28 airlines have chosen the Altéa Customer Management suite, including major carriers in Europe, Asia Pacific, America, Middle East and Africa. Altéa Reservation, which provides a seamless reservation service across multiple channels, is currently used by over 150 airlines as their internal sales system.