Information Proves Powerful
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Q4 2007 Streamlining and securing business operations with customer visibility In This Issue Information Proves Powerful 01 AirCore Community Group 02 Flight Security 03 Next-Gen Loyalty Solution 04 Billund Airport and Unisys 05 RFID Revolution 06 Unisys Community Groups 08 Unisys Helps TravelSky Gear Up for Olympics 10 US$ Services Getting Cheaper 11 AirCore Ad Campaign Wins Industry Award 14 Editor’s Note Information Proves Powerful Dear Colleagues, Unisys Passenger Services Seminar attracts thought leaders, The year 2007 is closing and it was an eventful trend setters to solve critical industry challenges year for Unisys AirCore: Hahn Air took the booking Legacy systems remain the workhorse of The driver is revenue generation and suite into production and, the airline industry. But they’re rapidly losing differentiation. [I’m not following this: later in the year, upgraded power. As Richard Clarke, principal analyst Revenue generation and differentiation “drive” to release 2.7. A great deal with Travel Technology Research, put it, the imperative to reduce costs and maximize of groundwork has been “We are putting lipstick on the pig…it’s a revenue? Is it that the lack of new/sustainable covered in the past year, and we continue to work really beautiful pig…but, at the end of the means of revenue generation and lack of on several opportunities that we expect to bring day it’s still a pig…” differentiation are causing the need to into the AirCore community in 2008. Last October, a dynamic group of executives reduce costs and increase revenue?] The New Year will also bring additional evidence gathered at Unisys International Management He challenged traditional airlines to seek of the strength of Unisys Passenger Services Centre just outside Nice, France, to participate new ways to increase revenues by focusing solutions. Our team will be visible at many in Unisys annual Passenger Services Seminar. on the most valuable opportunities – which industry seminars and conferences around the The event provided an opportunity to may not be obvious. Ancillary revenues world where they will demonstrate AirCore’s generate the most profit: sell the extras many features and elaborate on its message. interact with industry experts about the ever The message is extraordinarily strong, offering pressing question: how to decrease costs and market the core product. numerous benefits for airlines and an alternative and increase revenues to enhance the David Pellar, VP Business Development to high cost IT services and distribution. bottom line. From varying perspectives, EMEA/India at ITA Software, agreed. Pellar In addition, we will make a bold move in the speakers focused on the challenge of believes that by unbundling product offerings, Loyalty market by beginning development of the improving revenues by effectively meeting airlines can redefine airfare pricing and follow-on to our highly successful Customer Loyalty the demands of today’s consumer. shopping through transparency. Not only Solution. This solution has been operational at would this improve yields through self-service Air Miles (UK), Northwest Airlines, Cathay Pacific Clarke opened the seminar with a state Asia Miles and several other airlines for the best of the industry overview, cautioning airlines upsell, but it would also build consumer part of ten years. While its capabilities are still to look beyond the here and now and not trust and loyalty. Pellar pointed out, however, relevant, the loyalty market has changed markedly to assume that the small profits being that most legacy systems were not equipped and has expanded well beyond the airline sector. generated today will continue. The imperative to efficiently meet such demands, thereby Our follow-on solution will address and incorporate is to reduce costs and maximize revenue. losing the opportunity to gain or retain today’s new business requirements, as discussed customer loyalty. later in this newsletter. (continued on page 2) The New Year will also see our move to incorporate Unisys Airport solutions into the passenger services hub. Too long have they been satellite products. Soon they will become extensions into the airport domain of our main solution suite. So 2007 is over…but 2008 holds exciting possibilities and promise. I wish you and yours very peaceful holidays and a prosperous New Year. Best regards Mike McNamara VP and Partner Unisys Passenger Services Solutions AirCoreNEWS Q4 2007 AirCore Community Group Convenes on France’s Côte d’Azur The French Côte d’Azur was the auspicious charter. Participants heard about the role of backdrop for the inaugural meeting of the Unisys within industry organizations and were AirCore Community Group (ACG) last given an overview of all the current activities October. Convening at Unisys International and new standards coming from the industry. Management Centre, the event introduced An integral part of this exercise was to have what is expected to be a continuing and each client rate the business priority of the growing conference of AirCore clients. new industry items. These ratings help The ACG provides a forum for Unisys clients establish AirCore work plans for the near to meet with Unisys staff to exchange future, ensuring that AirCore solutions are ideas, news, progress, challenges, and on target with clients’ business objectives. plans. The newly created user group will As part of the group’s initiation, the first meet several times annually during the early issue of AirCore Information Releases (AIR) growth years of AirCore, and then annually was published, reporting on results of the thereafter. Each meeting’s agenda is inaugural session. Since then four additional tailored to address major issues facing AIRs have been distributed to ACG members, clients, the industry, and Unisys at that time. covering topics relating to flight security, data The ACG is coordinated by Art Kourajian and security, and a report on an IATA reservation Debbie McBride from Unisys. meeting. An AIR will be distributed after The October session offered an agenda every IATA industry meeting that is attended replete with introductory presentations that by Unisys staff. The second ACG session is outlined plans for the group and solidified its scheduled for mid-February 2008. Information Proves Powerful (continued from page 1) Taking the concept of loyalty, choice and In addition to providing consumers with satisfaction with the results. ANA selected options to another level, Bob Offutt, Senior choice, airlines should rethink what they’re AirCore to move its business operations Technical Analyst at PhoCusWright Inc., doing about revenue integrity. Kolbeinn into a new, open, Web-based environment. shared his thoughts about the benefits of Arinbjarnarson, VP of Sales and Marketing By implementing AirCore, ANA expects social networking and computing. He provided at Calidris, brought to light that at least significant reductions in the total cost of examples of several airlines that were using US$12 billion of revenue leaks out of the ownership of its reservation and boarding social networking strategies to build loyal industry every year. This is often due to the management system, and it will enable communities and enhance their brand and inefficiency of data management within silo- them to implement Internet-based, new profits. Customer loyalty is also gained by based legacy systems. Managing passenger business models quickly in response to defining and living a brand. Graham Hales, movement is not one passenger moving changing market trends. Interbrand’s Chief Communications Officer, through the process, but many processes Attendees were also provided with an stressed the importance of defining the moving the passenger. “Airlines need to overview of the AirCore solution, including organization’s brand and then, more impor- create a plan for stopping the revenue new features and functionality. The demo tantly, ensuring that its people live the brand. leakage and acquire the right tools – not addressed the many business issues high- Graham Hill, Customer Value Management only tools that will solve the immediate lighted during the sessions, and how AirCore expert at Customer Think, led an interesting problem, but tools that can grow with the was able to leverage next-gen technology to discussion on “The Value-Driven Airline in increasing demands of the airline.” achieve mandates of tomorrow’s consumers. a Customer 2.0 World” that focused on Fred Dillman, CTO and Strategic Program Guests and speakers enjoyed lively frequent flyer programs and other loyalty Lead at Unisys, discussed the business conversations focused on the profitability schemes and the challenges they present. importance of Open Source. By opening up of airlines in the future and walked away Loyalty programs are at their most profitable innovative ideas and intellectual property with valuable ideas to take back to their when they provide a platform for a one-stop to partners and competitors, Open Source organizations. Unisys looks forward to shopping, value-added customer experience. enables an idea to evolve at a rapid pace. seeing these same familiar faces and Terry Elliot, Consulting Manager, Customer Included in the seminar was an impromptu many new ones at its upcoming 2008 Loyalty Solution at Unisys, provided a status report on ANA’s implementation of Travel and Transportation conference glimpse of future of loyalty systems, as AirCore by Toru Sato, SVP of IT Services at being held in Beijing, China next April. part of the research currently underway at ANA. Sato-san covered the airline’s bench- Unisys for their next-gen Loyalty solution. marking of AirCore and expressed ANA’s 2 AirCoreNEWS Q4 2007 Flight Security Moves into Real-Time The complexion of passenger clearance • The Government allows “APIS pre-departure • At any time during this process, the and flight security will completely change clearance,” meaning that brief data CBP may send an unsolicited real-time in 2008 – from a post-departure, non- (passenger name and date of birth) can message to notify the airline that the interactive process, to a pre-departure, be sent up to 72 hours before flight status of a passenger has changed.