Amadeus’ Bet on Hotel Services Is Beginning to Pay Off
Photo Credit: Investors in travel technology group Amadeus hope the company can successfully diversify into hotel services. Pictured is Amadeus' headquarters in Madrid. Amadeus
Skift Take
Amadeus says it is pulling off its promised trick of staying profitable despite margin pressure on its mainstay airline services business. This year much depends on how well its reservation system projects with Southwest Airlines and IHG go.
Travel technology group Amadeus has two big stories to tell in 2017: one is about its linchpin technological services for airlines, and the other is about its new IT services for hotels.
Amadeus' largest airline project this year has a milestone moment coming in May, when Southwest Airlines, the largest U.S. carrier in domestic passengers boarded, switches over to Amadeus' reservation system for domestic bookings. (Southwest has already made the switch over for its (smaller) international bookings.) A flawless cutover would be used by the Madrid-based company to try to lure other airlines onto its system.
In its budding hotel services business, Amadeus' largest effort this year involves InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG), the biggest hotel group to join the Amadeus hospitality system. If the operation goes well, Amadeus will use the example to woo other major hotel chains.
Both stories dovetail in a broader narrative Amadeus told investors in a fourth-quarter 2016 call on Fri
